AGRICULTURE 


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UNIVERSITY    OF    ILLINOIS    LIBRARY    AT    URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 


L161— O-1096 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 


URBANA,  AUGUST,  1900. 


BULLETIN    No.   60. 


THE  ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 

New  enterprises, — new  difficulties;  new  crops, — new  insect  enemies 
and  old  enemies  in  a  new  role.  The  recent  introduction  and  rapid 
extension  of  sugar-beet  culture  in  America  have  brought  to  general 
notice  several  insect  species  not  before  known  as  injurious,  and  have 
given  a  new  food  to  others  well  known  for  their  attacks  on  the  older 
crops. 

The  beet  plant  is  very  similar  as  food  for  insects  to  some  of  our 
commonest  weeds,  and  hence  it  has  attracted  the  prompt  attention  of 
several  species  which,  if  we  have  noticed  them  at  all,  we  have  hitherto 
regarded  as  our  friends;  and  it  has  also  served  to  give  additional  variety 
to  the  diet  of  several  crop  insects  of  somewhat  general  feeding  habits. 
It  has  thus  already  recruited  a  large  entomological  following — about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  species  in  America,  if  we  put  upon  the  list  everything 
which  has  thys  far  been  found  to  feed  upon  the  beet  in  the  field.  Most 
of  these,  of  course,  can  hardly  be  called  injurious  in  the  economic  sense, 
but  with  our  present  knowledge  of  the  subject  about  forty  species  may 
be  definitely  so  classed.  Furthermore,  we  may  expect  additions  to  this 
list  from  time  to  time,  since  the  necessary  concentration  of  beet  culture 
in  the  neighborhood  of  factories  and  the  consequent  devotion  of  large 
areas  to  this  crop  year  after  year  for  an  indefinite  period  give  oppor- 
tunity for  an  extraordinary  multiplication  and  a  continuous  maintenance 

(397) 


398  BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

of  its  insect  enemies.  Doubtless,  also,  many  beet  insects  which  in  the 
short  period  since  beet  culture  began  in  America  have  been  present  in 
small  or  moderate  numbers  only,  will  from  time  to  time  exhibit  that 
tendency  to  extraordinary  and  alarming  multiplication  common  among 
the  injurious  species  generally. 

It  must  no,t  be  inferred,  however,  that  the  beet  plant  is  especially 
liable  to  insect  injury.  On  the  contrary,  taking  the  country  at  large, 
it  is  at  present  less  subject  to  such  damage  than  corn  or  wheat,  cabbage 
or  potatoes.  It  is  a  fact  particularly  favorable  to  this  crop  that  the 
marketable  part  of  the  plant  is  but  little  subject  to  injury  by  insects,  by 
far  the  greater  part  of  the  species  which  feed  on  it  infesting  only  the 
leaf,  and  relatively  few  injuring  the  root. 

The  critical  period  of  insect  injury  to  the  beet  is  in  the  beginning 
of  the  season,  while  the  plants  are  still  small  and  slow  of  growth.  There 
is  at  this  time  so  little  vegetation  on  the  ground  that  a  comparatively 
small  number  of  insects  may  serve  to  lay  the  field  completely  bare; 
and  poisons  are  often  not  available  since  a  leaf-feeding  insect  may  com- 
pletely devour  the  little  beet  while  getting  a  fatal  dose  of  poison  for  itself. 

The  principal  injurious  groups  are  the  leaf-miners,  the  web-worms, 
the  cutworms,  the  woolly  bears  and  several  other  leaf-eating  caterpillars, 
the  wireworms,  the  white  grubs,  the  flea-beetles,  the  blister-beetles,  the 
plant-bugs,  the  leaf-hoppers,  the  plant-lice,  and  the  grasshoppers.  The 
web-worms,  the  cutworms,  the  flea-beetles,  the  blister-beetles,  the  leaf- 
miners,  and  the  root-lice  have  done  the  greater  part  of  the  mischief  in 
the  states  beyond  the  Mississippi,  but  in  Illinois  the  only  considerable 
injury  seen  by  us  in  1898  and  1899  was  that  done  by  the  pale  striped 
flea-beetles,  the  grasshoppers,  and  the  blister-beetles. 

Insect  injuries  to  the  underground  part  of  the  beet  commonly  take 
the  form  either  of  a  cutting  of  the  tap-root,  an  eating  away  of  the 
smaller  roots,  or  a  burrowing  or  excavation  of  the  mass  of  the  beet 
itself.  They  are  commonly  due  either  to  wireworms,  to  white  grubs,  or 
to  the  beetles  of  one  of  the  muck-worms  (Ligyrus  gibbosus).  More 
rarely  root-lice  seriously  damage  the  plant  in  summer  by  sucking  the 
sap  from  the  roots.  It  is  probable  that  larvse  of  some  of  the  flea-beetles 
will  also  be  found  to  infest  the  plant  under  ground. 

Injuries  to  the  leaf  may  be  done  either  by  bugs  with  a  sucking  beak, 
or  by  beetles,  grasshoppers,  or  insect  larvre,  with  biting  meuths.  The 
former  abstract  the  sap  from  the  stem  or  the  blade  of  the  leaf,  often 
making  discolored  spots,  dwarfing  the  growth  and^,pausing  the  leaf  to 
curl,  or  even  killing  it  completely.  Beetles  and  their  larvae,  caterpillars, 
grasshoppers,  and  the  like,  commonly  make  holes  in  the  leaf,  the  smaller 
insects  small  circular  holes  as  a  rule,  and  the  larger  ones  either  gnawing 
away  the  edge  of  the  leaf,  eating  out  irregular  holes,  or,  if  cutworms, 
cutting  off  the  stalk  near  the  ground,  Small  holes  made  in  the  young 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    Of   THE    SUGAR   BEET.  399 

growing  blade  may  greatly  enlarge  as  the  plant  expands,  becoming 
longest  in  the  direction  of  the  most  rapid  growth.  Certain  maggots  of 
flies  (the  leaf-miners)  eat  out  the  interior  substance  of  the  leaf  in  patches, 
leaving  the  cuticle  unbroken. 

EXAMPLES  OF  INSECT  INJURY  TO  THE.BEET. 

The  first  injury  to  the  beet  reported  in  America  was  a  mining  of 
the  leaves  by  the  maggots  of  certain  flies  in  a  New  York  vegetable 
garden,  an  injury  sufficient  to  prevent  the  use  of  the  leaves  for  "greens." 
Later,  serious  and  extensive  damage  was  done  by  these  leaf-miners  to 
fields  of  sugar  beets  in  California.  The  leaf  is  penetrated  by  the 
insects,  and  the  tissue  is  eaten  out  between  the  upper  and  lower  layers 
of  the  cuticle,  colorless  blister-like  spots  being  thus  produced. 

Perhaps  the  most  destructive  of  the  beet  insects  in  the  West  are  the 
garden  web-worms  {Loxostege  similalis  and  L.  sticticalis^).  The  latter 
was  in  1892  the  chief  depredator  in  the  beet  fields  of  Grand  Island, 
Platte  Center,  and  several  other  Nebraska  localities,  where  many  of  the 
plants  were  entirely  defoliated. 

.'ibe  garden  Mamestra  {Mamestra  trifolif],  a  caterpillar  allied  to 
the  zebra-caterpillar  of  the  cabbage,  has  been  reported  by  Professor 
Lawrence  Bruner,  of  Nebraska,  to  be  quite  common  in  his  state,  and  is 
sometimes  considerably  injurious  to  the  beet. 

Cutworms  have  been  noticed  wherever  beets  are  raised.  Bruner 
reports  them  in  1891  as  occasionally  quite  destructive  to  the  plant  while 
it  is  small,  continuing  their  injury  more  or  less  throughout  the  summer. 
They  commonly  cut  off  the  leaf  at  or  a  little  below  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  but  some  of  them  merely  feed  upon  the  blades.  In  1892  they 
almost  entirely  destroyed  sugar  beets  growing  upon  two  Experiment 
Station  plats  at  Lincoln,  Neb.,  on  one  of  which  only  about  twenty  per 
cent,  of  a  stand  was  obtained.  It  was  noticed  here  that  little  injury 
was  done  on  land  plowed  the  preceding  fall  and  a  second  time  in  spring. 
Osborn  noticed  cutworms  in  Iowa  doing  serious  injury  to  young  beets 
in  1891. 

The  army-worm  {Leucania  unipuncta)  has  occasionally  attacked 
the  beet,  with  other  vegetation;  and  grasshoppers  are  frequently  respon- 
sible for  a  considerable  injury  in  the  latter  half  of  the  season.  They 
are  not  especially  fond  of  this  plant,  however,  and  rarely  injure  it 
seriously  except  when  their  numbers  are  excessive.  The  caterpillar 
known  in  the  West  as  the  army-cutworm  {Chorizagrotis  agrestis)  de- 
stroyed beets,  with  many  other  plants,  in  Montana  in  1897,  traveling  by 
night  like  the  eastern  army-worm,  and  collecting  in  masses  in  irrigation 
ditches  to  a  depth  of  six  to  twelve  inches.  The  western  Laphygma  or 
beet  army-worm  {Laphygma  flavimaculata],  related  to  the  grass-worm 
of  the  East,  almost  completely  defoliated  hundreds  of  acres  of  beets  in 


40<3  BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

Colorado  in  1899.  Several  of  the  flea-beetles — readily  distinguished 
from  other  beetles  infesting  the  beet  by  their  leaping  habit  when 
alarmed — seriously  injure  the  leaves  by  riddling  them  with  small  holes. 
The  worst  of  these  is  the  pale-striped  flea-beetle  (Systetia  tceniata), 
abundant  in  beet  fields  in  Illinois  in  1898  and  1899.  Two  insects  hith- 
erto little  noticed  by  the  economic  entomologist,  and  known  locally  as 
French  bugs  {Monoxia  puncticollis  and  M.  consputa),  have  made  a 
serious  attack  upon  this  plant,  the  first  of  these  species  in  New  Mexico 
and  the  second  on  the  Pacific  coast — especially  in  Oregon.  The  former 
sometimes  riddles  the  leaves,  leaving  only  a  network  of  veins,  and  of 
course  checking  the  growth  of  the  plant  or  even  killing  it. 

The  well-known  blister-beetles  of  various  species  have  infested  beet 
fields  with  serious  consequences  in  many  places,  especially  in  the 
northern  Mississippi  Valley.  They  are  most  destructive,  as  a  rule,  after 
a  period  of  unusual  abundance  of  grasshoppers,  on  the  eggs  of  which 
their  larvae  feed.  The  muck  beetle  {Ligyrus~)  has  occasionally  been 
somewhat  injurious  to  beets  over  limited  areas  in  western  Nebraska, 
working  underground  and  gnawing  the  beet  from  without,  sometimes 
entirely  imbedding  itself  in  the  root.  White  grubs  and  wirewor^ns  are 
less  injurious  than  might  be  supposed  from  their  great  numbers  and 
general  feeding  habits,  owing,  no  doubt,  to  the  fact  that  beets  are  rarely 
planted  after  grass,  in  which  these  insects  mainly  breed.  A  root  aphis 
{Pemphigus  beta)  sometimes  does  serious  injury,  frequently  attributed 
by  beet  growers  to  the  more  active  and  conspicuous  ants  which  live  in 
its  company.  The  most  noticeable  instance  of  this  injury  known  to 
us  was  reported  from  La  Grande,  Oregon,  where  both  the  quantity  and 
the  quality  of  the  crop  were  seriously  affected  in  1899.  A  considerable 
injury  has  been  done  by  one  of  the  green  plant-bugs  or  stink-bugs 
{Lioderma}  locally  abundant  from  South  Dakota  to  California  and 
Mexico. 

PRINCIPAL   PREVENTIVE  AND    REMEDIAL   MEASURES. 

The  more  important  measures  of  prevention  of  insect  injury  to  the 
beet  are  clean  culture  and  a  suitable  system  of  rotation.  So  many  of 
the  insect  enemies  of  this  plant  depend  largely  upon  certain  common 
fleshy  weeds,  that  the  growth  of  these  in  or  near  a  beet  plantation  is  a 
menace  to  the  crop.  The  red  or  spiny  pigweeds  {Amarantus),  white 
pigweed  or  lamb's-quarters  {Chenopodium  albuni),  purslane,  and  the 
cocklebur  are  the  principal  examples.  Weeds  of  this  description  should 
not  be  allowed  to  gain  any  foothold  or  even  to  make  a  start  in  or  about 
a  beet  field,  for  if  they  do  they  are  likely  to  attract  their  special  insects, 
which,  when  these  weeds  are  destroyed,  transfer  their  attentions  to  the 
beet,  sometimes  with  highly  destructive  effect.  Many  beet  insects  pass 
the  winter  on  the  ground  under  the  protection  of  fallen  leaves  and  other 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          401 

vegetable  rubbish,  while  others  hibernate  in  the  earth  of  plowed  fields. 
The  raking  and  burning  of  vegetable  trash  in  fall  to  destroy  the  winter 
harborage  of  injurious  insects,  and  fall  plowing  to  break  up  the  earthen 
cells  of  underground  species  are  consequently  useful  general  measures 
of  prevention.  The  preparation  of  the  soil  now  commonly  preferred 
by  beet  growers,  that  is,  plowing  thoroughly  both  in  fal]  and  spring,  is 
an  important  safeguard  against  insect  injury,  especially  against  cutworm 
attack. 

Beets  should  not  be  preceded  on  the  same  ground  by  any  crop 
especially  liable  to  breed  and  feed  the  more  prominent  beet  insects. 
Thus  a  system  of  rotation  in  which  beets  follow  upon  grass  would  be 
highly  objectionable,  since  some  of  the  worst  insect  enemies  of  the 
beet — the  cutworms,  the  wireworms,  and  the  white  grubs,  for  example — 
commonly  breed  in  sod.  Either  oats  or  corn  may  precede  the  beet 
without  objection  from  the  entomologist,  the  choice  to  be  made  between 
these  two  on  general  agricultural  principles. 

There  is  no  direct  remedy  available  for  injuries  to  the  underground 
part  of  the  beet*,  but  injuries  to  the  leaves  may  commonly  be  arrested 
by  the  use  of  one  or  the  other  of  the  ordinary  insecticide  sprays;  kerosene 
for  plant-lice,  leaf-hoppers,  and  other  insects  which  pierce  the  leaf  with 
the  beak  and  suck  the  sap,  or  one  of  the  arsenical  poisons  for  those 
which  eat  the  leaf.  Kerosene  may  be  applied  as  an  emulsion  with  soap- 
suds; or,  more  conveniently,  as  a  mechanical  mixture  with  water,  thrown 
upon  the  plant  by  means  of  one  of  the  special  sprayers  now  constructed 
to  deliver  fixed  proportions  of  water  and  kerosene  intermingled  in  a  very 
fine  spray.  The  smooth  surface  of  the  beet  leaf  makes  it  difficult  to 
apply  fluid  poisons  successfully,  since  they  are  likely  to  run  off,  leaving 
no  residue  sufficient  to  serve  as  a  fatal  dose.  This  difficulty  may  probably 
be  met  by  using  either  Bordeaux  mixture  or  soap-suds  instead  of  water 
as  a  medium  for  conveying  arsenic  or  Paris  green.  In  this  case  a  quarter 
of  a  pound  of  Paris  green  and  an  equal  quantity  of  lime  should  be  kept 
thoroughly  stirred  up  in  the  tank  or  barrel  with  fifty  gallons  of  the 
Bordeaux  mixture  or  the  soap-suds,  the  latter  of  a  strength  to  be  de- 
termined by  preliminary  experiment.  When  the  beets  are  small  the 
arsenical  poisons  may  probably  be  best  applied,  as  advised  by  Professor 
Gillette,  by  mixing  one  part  by  weight  of  Paris  green  with  twenty  parts 
of  flour  and  then  dusting  over  the  plants  before  sunrise  on  a  dewy 
morning.  This  application  may,  if  more  convenient,  be  made  while 
the  leaves  are  moist  from  a  recent  shower.  "To  apply  the  poison,"  he 
says,  "make  a  small  cheese-cloth  sack  about  five  inches  in  diameter  and 
ten  inches  deep.  Fill  it  with  the  mixture  of  poison  and  flour  and  walk 

*In  Europe,  volatile  poisons  like  bisulphide  of  carbon  are  sometimes  applied  underground,  especially 
for  the  destruction  of  root-lice  and  wireworms;  but  this  measure  is  doubtless  too  expensive  of  time  and 
labor  for  the  American  beet-grower,  especially  as  injuries  by  these  insects  may  be  mostly  avoided  here  by 
a  proper  general  management. 


462  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

along  a  row  of  plants  shaking  the  sack  over  them.  This  can  be  done 
quite  rapidly  when  one  has  learned  how,  and  is  economical  of  poison 
and  does  not  require  wheelbarrow  or  wagon  to  carry  pump  and  tank. 
If  a  spray  is  used,  apply  either  Paris  green  or  London  purple 
in  the  proportion  of  a  pound  to  a  hundred  gallons  of  water  and  add  two 
pounds  of  fresh  lime  for  each  pound  of  poison.  The  lime  should  be 
slaked  and  strained  through  a  sack  to  take  out  lumps.  Then  use  a 
nozzle  that  throws  a  fine  spray,  and  do  not  continue  the  application  in 
any  place  long  enough  so  that  the  drops  sprayed  upon  the  leaves  will 
run  together  and  flow  off,  carrying  the  poison  with  them. 

"  If  white  arsenic  is  used,  prepare  according  to  the  following  direc- 
tions: Put  two  pounds  of  white  arsenic  and  eight  pounds  of  sal-soda  to- 
gether in  a  dish  and  boil  for  twenty  minutes  in  two  gallons  of  water,  and 
keep  as  a  concentrated  solution.  //  is  extremely  poisonous  and  should 
be  placed  at  once  where  there  is  no  possibility  that  children  or  domestic 
animals  can  get  it.  Also,  label  it  'Poison'  in  large  letters.  Then,  in  each 
forty  gallons  of  water,  first  slake  four  pounds  of  lime  and  then  add 
slowly  one  quart  of  the  concentrated  solution  while  the  whole  is  being 
stirred.  The  mixture  is  then  ready  for  application,  as  in  case  of  Paris 
green.  The  lime  should  be  strained  through  a  cloth  to  take  out  the 
lumps."  * 

Cutworms  may  usually  best  be  destroyed  either  by  hand-picking, 
with  lanterns  at  night,  or  by  the  use  of  poisoned  baits.  The  most  con- 
venient and  effective  of  these  is  a  bran  mash  or  dry  bran,  poisoned  with 
London  purple  or  Paris  green.  For  the  preparation  of  the  poisoned 
mash  the  insecticide  should  be  thoroughly  mixed  with  dry  wheat  bran — 
a  pound  or  two  to  twenty  five  pounds  of  bran  is  a  suitable  proportion — 
with  water  enough,  sweetened  with  molasses,  to  form  a  mash  sufficiently 
stiff  to  be  dipped  out  without  dripping.  This  is  distributed,  a  large 
table-spoonful  in  a  place,  along  the  row  of  plants,  beginning  while  they 
are  still  very  young.  Dry  bran  is  poisoned  by  first  dampening  the  bran 
very  slightly  with  sweetened  water  and  adding  the  Paris  green, — one 
pound  of  the  poison  to  fifty  of  bran, — shaking  it  on  a  little  at  a  time 
and  stirring  it  in  until  the  whole  mass  is  evenly  mixed.  This  poisoned 
mixture  may  be  conveniently  distributed  by  the  use  of  a  seed-drill,  filling 
the  seed  box  with  poisoned  bran  and  running  lines  of  it  close  to  the 
rows.  As  a  comparatively  crude  but  more  rapid  method,  for  use  on  a 
large  scale,  clover  or  fleshy  weeds  may  be  sprayed  with  Paris  green,  cut 
with  a  scythe  or  mowing  machine,  and  pitched  in  small  quantities  from 
wheelbarrows  or  small  wagons  wherever  desired.  The  piles  of  poisoned 
herbage  should  be  placed  at  nightfall  a  few  feet  apart  between  the  rows 
of  plants. 

The  blister-beetles  can  often  be  driven  out  of  a  field  by  whipping 

• 

*  Press  Bull.,  No.  3  (May,  1900),  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Col.,  pp.  2,  3. 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  403 

or  brushing  the  plants  attacked  by  them,  and  once  expelled  they  return 
slowly  or  not  at  all.  The  very  common  striped  species  is  usually  quite 
easily  expelled  in  this  way,  but  the  margined  blister-beetle  is  not  so 
easily  driven.  The  injuries  of  these  beetles  should  be  arrested,  if  prac- 
ticable, without  destroying  them,  as  in  the  larval  stage  they  are  ex- 
tremely useful  enemies  of  grasshoppers.  Indeed  they  are  commonly 
numerous  enough  to  be  injurious  only  when  grasshoppers  are  themselves 
abundant  or  have  been  so  very  recently.  The  blister-beetles  are  also 
subject  to  poisoning  by  Paris-green  sprays.  Mechanical  measures  for 
the  coilection  and  destruction  of  leaf-eating  insects  are  sometimes 
resorted  to  in  Europe,  but  have  not  as  yet  become  necessary  in  this 
country. 

These  general  suggestions  of  insecticide  measures  must  suffice  for 
this  preliminary  report,  since  few  exact  experiments  have  been  made  in 
this  country  with  insecticide  applications  to  the  sugar  beet,  and  there  is 
very  little  expert  testimony  upon  this  subject  to  draw  upon. 

CLASSIFICATION  OF  THE  SUGAR-BEET  INSECTS. 
As  the  beet  grower  usually  cannot  become  an  entomologist,  and 
probably  does  not  wish  to  become  one  if  he  could,  it  is  important  that 
he  should  have  a  means  of  identifying  and  recognizing  insect  injuries' 
to  his  beets  without  being  compelled,  more  than  is  really  necessary,  to 
make  himself  acquainted  with  the  names  and  habits  of  the  insects  con- 
cerned. This  end  he  may  accomplish  in  great  measure  by  a  careful 
observation  of  the  injuries  to  the  plants  themselves,  by  which  means  he 
may  readily  limit  his  inquiries  to  a  comparatively  small  number  of  in- 
sect species  capable  of  doing  the  kind  of  injury  under  observation. 
Thus,  if  he  finds  the  underground  part  of  the  beet  eaten  into  or  gnawed 
away  he  of  course  excludes  at  once  from  consideration  those  species 
which  infest  the  plant  only  above  ground,  and  also  those  which  infest  it 
under  ground  but  which  merely  pierce  it  with  their  beaks  and  suck  out 
its  juices;  and  similarly,  if  he  finds  the  leaves  ragged  and  evidently 
being  eaten  away  by  biting  insects,  of  whatever  kind,  his  search  for  a 
remedy  is  greatly  simplified.  He  needs  only  to  see  whether  the  injury 
is  being  done  by  blister-beetles,  which  should  be  driven  from  the  field, 
or  by  cutworms  or  grasshoppers,  which  may  best  be  destroyed  by  poi- 
soned baits.  If  he  finds  neither  of  these,  he  may  proceed  at  once  to 
spray  his  plants  with  an  arsenical  insecticide,  knowing  that  whatever 
the  insect  agent  of  the  injury  may  be  this  will  be  the  proper  method  of 
attack.  In  this  paper  the  insects  likely  to  do  any  single  kind  of  injury 
have  been  brought  together  for  discussion  in  an  economic  group  the 
members  of  which  are  few  in  number  and  readily  distinguishable  from 
each  other,  and  the  inquirer  is  thus  brought  by  the  shortest  and  easiest 
route  to  the  sources  of  the  practical  information  which  he  desires. 


404  BULLETIN    NO.    60.  [August, 

The  following  classification  of  insect  injuries  to  the  beet  and 
arrangement  of  injurious  insects  under  them  in  economic  groups  is 
intended  as  an  aid  to  these  identifications. 

KEY    FOR    THE    RECOGNITION    OF    INSECT    INJURIES    TO    BEETS. 

(Plant  apparently  injured,  but  its  substance  above  ground  not  evidently 
eaten  in  a  way  to  account  for  the  injury.  .  .  .  .2. 

I    Substance  of  leaf  evidently  more  or  less  eaten  away.     (Injuries  by  biting 

insects;  arrested  by  arsenical  poisons.)          .  .  .  '  .         7. 

(Leaves  discolored— that  is,  specked,  spotted,  or  blotched  with  whitish, 
yellowish,  or  purple;  often  more  or  less  wrinkled  or  curled.  (Injuries 
by  sucking  insects  or  by  mites;  arrested  by  kerosene  sprays.)  3. 

I    Leaves  not  specked,  spotted,  wrinkled,  or  blistered  to  account  for  injury; 

under-ground  part  of  plant  affected.  .  .  .  .6. 

(Under  surface,  when  very  closely  examined,  seen  to  be  covered  with  a  very 
fine  loose  dirty  web.  Discolored  blotches  large,  more  or  less  cupped 
beneath.  Minute  oval  reddish  specks  moving  on  surface  of  leaf. 

Red  Sliders,  p.  406. 
[   Surface  of  leaf  not  webbed.  .  .  .  .  .  .4. 

/    Small  blister-like  cavities  in   the   thickness  of  the  leaf,  making  colorless 
4   -|  translucent  spots.  .  .  .  Leaf -miners,  p.  407. 

(    Leaf  without  blister-like  spots.      .  .  .  .  .  5. 

(    Many  small  greenish,  yellowish,  or  grayish  soft-bodied  hopping  insects  on 

i  leaves.     Empty  skins  of  the  same  usually  scattered  on  the  surface. 

Discolored  specks  of  the  leaf  small.  .      Leaf -ho fibers,  p.  410. 

I    Leaf-hoppers  not  abundant.     Discolorations  usually  larger. 

Plant-lice,  leaf-bugs,  plant-bugs,  and  other  Hemiptera,  pp.  428-448. 

I  Small  sluggish  greenish  insects  numerous  on  underground  growth,  usually 
.,    J  associated  with  ants.  .  .  .  Root-lice,  p.  507. 

I  Roots  eaten,  excavated,  or  burrowed. 
[  Wireivorms,  ^vhite  grubs,  muck-beetles*  pp.  509-513. 

j    Leaves  cut  off  at  ground.  ....  Ctttzuorms,  p.  448. 

i    Leaves  not  cut  off.  .......         8. 

„    j    Leaves  rolled  or  folded.  .  9. 

i 
(    Leaves  not  merely  rolled  or  folded.  .  .  .  .  .10. 

f    Leaf  rolled  at  edge,  small  striped  green  caterpillar  within  the  roll. 
Q    J  Leaf-rollers,  p.  453. 

j     Leaf  folded  lengthwise  at   middle,   sides  closely  webbed   together,  small 
green  caterpillar  usually  in  fold  beneath  web.      Leaf-folders,  p.  454. 

{Plant  more  or  less  covered  or  inclosed  with  loose  open  web,  leaves  eaten 
by  spotted  or  striped  caterpillars.  .  .  Web-icorms,  p.  454. 

Plant  not  webbed,  leaves  free.  .....  n. 

(    Leaves  riddled  by  small,   usually  circular  holes.     Many  small  hard  leaf- 
beetles  present.          .         Plant-beetles,  flea-beetles,  etc.,  pp.  460-476. 
|     Leaves  ragged  by  coarse  irregular  openings  or  eaten  away  irregularly  from 
[  edges.          .        Grasshoppers,  beetles,  caterpillars,  etc.,  pp.  476-506. 


*See  also  the  dark-sided  cutworm  (Curneades  wessoria),  p.  450,  foot-note. 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  405 

DETAILED  DISCUSSION  OF  GROUPS  AND  INJURIES. 

The  imperfect  state  of  our  knowledge  of  the  sugar-beet  insects  in 
America  has  made  it  important  that  both  the  beet  grower  and  the 
investigating  economic  entomologist  should  be  considered  in  the  prep- 
aration of  a  detailed  account  of  species  and  injuries.  For  the  benefit 
of  the  beet  grower  the  species  have  been  discussed,  so  far  as  possible, 
in  economic  groups,  and  those  which  do  the  principal  harm,  or  seem 
likely  to  become  important  enemies  to  this  plant,  are  treated  with 
especial  fullness.  As  an  aid  to  investigation,  however,  even  relatively 
insignificant  species  have  been  noticed,  and  at  least  mention  has  been 
made  of  every  insect  known  by  us  to  be  to  any  extent  destructive. 
Considerable  attention  has  also  been  given  to  the  bibliography  of  the 
subject,  and  every  bibliographical  reference  of  any  importance  in  our 
possession  is  contained  in  the  list  of  papers  presented  herewith. 

Especial  acknowledgments  are  due  to  Professor  Lawrence  Bruner, 
of  the  State  University  of  Nebraska,  for  a  complete  list  of  insect  species 
known  to  him  as  injurious  to  the  sugar  beet  and  for  other  useful  infor- 
mation without  which  the  difficulty  of  preparing  this  paper  would  have 
been  very  much  increased. 

Copies  of  published  figures  have  also  been  received  from  Professor 
Bruner  and  from  others  as  follows:  from  the  Division  of  Publications 
of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  through  the  kindness  of  Dr.  L. 
O.  Howard,  Chief  of  the  Division  of  Entomology;  from  Prof.  H.  E. 
Summers,  State  Entomologist  of  Iowa;  from  Prof.  Otto  Lugger,  State 
Entomologist  of  Minnesota;  from  Director  C.  D.  Smith,  of  the  Michigan 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station;  from  Director  Jas.  H.  Shepard,  of  the 
South  Dakota  Agricultural  Experiment  Station;  from  R.  W.  Doane, 
Assistant  Zoologist  of  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station; 
from  Prof.  M.  V.  Slingerland,  Entomologist  of  the  Cornell  University 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station;  from  Dr.  Jas.  Fletcher,  Dominion 
Entomologist  and  Botanist  to  Government  Experimental  Farms,  Ottawa, 
Can  ;  from  Director  Chas.  D.  Woods,  of  the  Maine  Agricultural  Ex- 
periment Station;  and  from  the  J.  B.  Lippincott  Publishing  Company, 
Philadelphia. 

To  Mr.  Theo.  Hapke,  formerly  of  the  Illinois  Sugar  Refining  Com- 
pany at  Pekin,  and  to  Prof.  P.  G.  Holden,  Superintendent  of  the 
Agricultural  Department  of  this  Company  in  1900,  we  are  indebted  for 
many  courtesies  shown  and  assistance  given  during  visits  to  their  premises 
for  the  study  of  beet  insects  in  the  field. 


406  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [AugUS/ 

Leaves  of  plant  discolored,  and  lower  surface  covered  with  a  delicate, 
loose,  and  dirty  iv  ebbing. 

THE  RED   SPIDERS. 

THE  COMMON  RED  SPIDER. 

Tetranychus  bimaculatus  Harv. 

About  the  first  of  September,  1899,  during  a  period  of  uncommonly 
dry  weather,  in  sugar-beet  fields  near  Tremont  and  Pekin,  111.,  plants 
were  observed  here  and  there,  most  commonly  near  the  margins  of  the 
fields,  which  were  conspicuously  paler  than  the  rest,  many  of  the  leaves, 
especially  the  larger  ones,  being  spotted  and  blotched  with  pale  yellow- 
ish. The  under  surface  of  the  leaf  beneath  these  faded  spots  was  un- 
usually dirty,  and  with  a  magnifier  was  seen  to  be  coated  with  a  fine 
loose  web  containing  many  minute  particles;  and  moving  over  the  sur- 
face of  the  leaf  were  minute  oval  translucent  reddish  mites,  usually 
marked  on  each  side  of  the  back  with  a  darker  blotch.  Many  of  the 
dust-like  particles  in  the  web  on  these  leaves  were  evidently  empty  egg- 
shells of  the  mite,  and  others  were  its  globular  excreta.  Careful  com- 
parison of  these  specimens  and  of  those  found  abundant  on  hemp  in  the 
vicinity  of  beet  fields  in  1900,  showed  that  all  belonged  to  the  species 
mentioned  above. 

The  injury  was  not  serious  here,  and  no  other  instance  of  the  occur- 
rence of  the  "red  spider  "in  beet  fields  came  to  our  knowledge  last 
year;  but  the  very  severe  injury  which  many  kinds  of  vegetation  suffer 
from  these  mites,  particularly  in  hot  and  dry  weather,  makes  it  desirable 
that  the  attention  of  beet  growers  should  be  called  to  them.  Although 
they  are  commonly  more  injurious  to  greenhouse  plants  than  to  growths 
in  the  open  air,  their  occurrence  on  trees,  shrubbery,  and  herbaceous 
vegetation  generally  is  well  known. 

A  correct  idea  of  the  form  and  structure  of  this  mite  may  be  got 
from  Fig.  i,  2,  3,  and  no  extended  description  need  be  given  here,  espe- 
cially as  other  species  of  the  genus  will  very  likely  be  found  abundant 
on  the  beet  leaf.  The  life  history  of  these  mites  has  not  been  thoroughly 
worked  out,  but  they  are  believed  to  winter  as  adults  among  dead  leaves, 
in  the  crevices  of  sticks,  and  in  similar  shelters.  They  begin  to  breed 
as  soon  as  the  weather  favors  their  multiplication  and  continue  active 
throughout  the  season,  but  the  number  and  succession  of  generations 
is  as  yet  unknown.  According  to  the  observations  of  Prof.  F.  L. 
Harvey,*  by  whom  this  species  was  described,  it  infests  an  unusual  list 
of  plants,  distributed  through  no  less  than  twenty-four  of  the  botanical 
orders.  Those  worst  injured  at  Orono,  Me.,  were  beans,  fuchsias, 
wedding  bell  (^Brugmansia),  castor-oil  plant,  and  Boston  smilax  {Myr- 

*Ann.  Rep.  Me.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  1892,  p.  133. 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


407 


siphylluiti).  Among  the  other  host  plants  are  mignonette,  pinks,  roses, 
apricots,  cucumbers,  musk-melons,  fever  few,  verbenas,  sage,  helio- 
trope, cypress  vine,  moon-flower,  morning-glory,  tomato,  egg-plant, 


The  Red  Spider,  Tetranychus  bi- 
maculatus,  male,  greatly  magnified. 
(Harvey.) 


2. 


The  Red  Spider,  Tetranychus  bi- 
inaculatus.  female,  greatly  magni- 
fied. (Harvey.) 


3. 


The  Red  Spider,  Te- 
tranychus bimaculatus, 
foot.  (Harvey.) 


hop,  and  calla.  If  an  insecticide  operation  is  required  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  red  spider  in  beet  fields,  the  usual  kerosene  sprays  (see  page 
401)  would  probably  be  effective  if  so  applied  as  to  reach  the  under 
side  of  the  leaves. 


Leaves  marked  with  irregular  blister-like  blotches,  due  to  removal  of 
substance  between  the  upper  and  the  lower  cuticle. 

THE   BEET  LEAF-MINERS. 

Chortophila  floccosa  Macq. 
Chortophila  bet  arum  Lintn. 

Pegomyia  vicina  Lintn. 

The  beet  leaf-miners  are  the  larvae  or  maggots  of  small  flies  which 
mine  out  the  interior  substance  of  the  leaf  in  blotches  of  various  shape, 
leaving  the  cuticle  entire  until  it  is  ruptured  later  by  the  escape  of  the 
full-grown  larva  for  pupation  in  the  earth.  The  abandoned  mines  then 
become  dried,  shriveled,  and  discolored,  and  are  further  torn  by  the 
subsequent  growth  of  the  leaf. 

The  three  species  known  to  injure  the  beet  in  America  were  re- 
ported from  a  single  vegetable  garden  in  New  York  by  Dr.  J.  A.  Lintner 


408 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


in  1881*.  "A  leaf  free  from  eggs,"  says  he,  "could  rarely  be  found, 
and  so  large  a  number  of  the  leaves  were  blotched  by  this  means  that 
they  could  be  no  longer  used  for  'greens'."  The  attack  continued 
throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  season,  and  a  similar  instance  was 
noticed  in  1882  by  Dr.  Lintner  in  Vermont. 


Fig.  4.  The  Beet  Leaf-miner,  Pegomyia  vicina:  a,  surface  of  egg,  very  highly  magnified;  b,  larva; 
c,  last  segment  of  same;  d,  anal  spiracles;  e,  headiyi  thoracic  spiracles;  g,  cephalic  hooks  of  larva;  h, 
puparium;  i,  adult  fly;  k,  head  of  male;  /,  head  of  female.  (From  Howard,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 

A  much  more  serious  injury  by  these  insects  occurred  in  California 
in  1891  on  the  plantation  of  the  Western  Sugar  Beet  Company,  where 
about  a  thousand  acres  of  promising  beets  were  all  more  or  less  dam- 
aged by  one  of  the  species  above  mentioned  (P.  vicina).  In  1894  and 
1895  the  same  species  did  much  harm  to  spinach  in  New  York,  as 
reported  by  F.  A.  Sirrine.f  These  or  related  species  feed  also  on  the 
common  white  pigweed  or  lamb's-quarters  {Chenopodium  albuni},  in 
which  they  are  often  extremely  abundant,  and  from  this  plant  they  are  • 
likely  sometimes  to  spread  to  the  beet. 

The  eggs  are  placed  by  the  female  on  the  under  surface  of  the  leaf, 
sometimes  singly,  but  most  commonly  in  numbers  varying  from  two  to 
five  together.  From  thirty  to  forty  have  sometimes  been  counted  on  a 
single  leaf.  The  larvae  enter  the  leaf  at  once  on  hatching,  making  a 
burrow  which  is  in  the  beginning  scarcely  wider  than  the  diameter  of 
the  egg-shell,  but  which  expands  within  a  short  distance  into  an  irregu- 
lar blotch.  When  two  or  more  eggs  are  placed  side  by  side  the  larvae 
from  them  occupy  the  same  cavity.  When  they  become  so  crowded  as 


*  First  Ann.  Rep.  State  Ent.  N.  Y.,  p.  203. 

t  Fourteenth  Ann.  Rep.  N.  Y.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  p.  6ic 


1 900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF   THE    SUGAR    BEET.  409 

to  interfere  with  each  other's  food  supply,  some  of  them  may  leave  their 
native  mines  and  form  others  elsewhere.  The  leaf-miners  observed  by 
Dr.  Lintner  usually  entered  the  earth  for  pupation,  although  a  few 
formed  their  puparia  between  the  leaves.  From  existing  accounts  it, 
appears  that  the  species  hibernate  in  the  puparia,  from  which  the  flies 
emerge  in  April  and  May.  The  work  of  the  larvae  has  been  seen  in  the 
field  from  the  middle  of  May  until  November  20.  In  Howard's  breed- 
ing experiments  the  life  cycle  of  a  generation  was  about  a  month  in 
length,  and  there  are  evidently  several  broods  in  a  season,  six  or  seven 
in  New  York,  according  to  Sirrine's  opinion.  The  great  variation  in 
the  numbers  of  these  insects  in  different  years  is  probably  to  be  ex- 
plained, fn  part  at  least,  by  the  destruction  of  their  eggs  and  larvae  by 
other  insects.  Most  of  the  eggs  examined  by  Lintner  in  September, 
1881,  had  been  destroyed,  apparently  by  some  insect  which  punctured 
them  and  fed  upon  their  contents.  A  common  predaceous  insect, 
Coriscus  ferus,  was  observed  by  Sirrine  apparently  puncturing  the  larvae 
from  the  outside  as  they  lay  in  the  mines. 

The  following  general  description  of  Pegomyia  vicina  in  its  several 
stages,  given  by  Mr.  Sirrine,  will  serve  for  the  identification  of  these 
insects. 

"The  eggs  are  white,  about  .03  of  an  inch  in  length,  delicately 
reticulated  and  nearly  cylindrical  in  shape.  The  white  reticulated  por- 
tion of  the  egg  is  an  outer  covering,  and  is  easily  removed  in  little 
scale-like  particles.  When  the  eggs  are  deposited  this  covering  is 
apparently  viscid  and  aids  in  attaching  them  to  the  leaf.  Beneath  this 
reticulated  covering  is  a  semi-transparent  membrane. 

"The  maggot  or  larva  is  about  five-sixteenths  of  an  inch  long  when 
full  grown,  larger  at  the  posterior  than  at  the  anterior  end.  When  first 
taken  from  the  leaf  they  have  a  white,  glassy  appearance.  In  the 
posterior  half  of  the  body  the  green  contents  of  the  intestine  show  quite 
distinctly,  while  the  black,  hook-like  jaws,  or  what  answers  for  jaws, 
can  be  seen  as  a  curved  line  at  the  anterior  end. 

"  The  puparium,  or  resting  stage,  is  about  .21  of  an  inch  long, 
chestnut-brown  in  color  when  formed,  but  soon  changing  to  a  dark 
brown  and  difficult  to  distinguish  from  the  surrounding  soil. 

"  The  flies  are  quite  variable  in  size.  They  usually  carry  the  body 
in  a  slightly  curved  position.  The  front  of  the  head  is  silvery  white 
with  a  reddish  brown  line  extending  vertically  through  the  center.  The 
females  are  of  an  olivaceous  ash  color,  and  can  be  distinguished  from 
the  males  by  the  following  characters:  The  eyes  are  smaller  and  placed 
further  apart  than  in  the  male.  The  legs,  excepting  the  tarsi,  are  yellow 
or  reddish  yellow.  The  body  is  not  as  hairy  as  in  the  males,  nor  are 
the  hairs  as  long,  except  at  the  end  of  the  abdomen  where  there  is 
a  distinct  tuft  of  long  hairs.  The  males  are  darker  colored  than  the 


410  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [AltgUSt, 

females,  more  hairy;  the  femora  of  the  front  pair  of  legs  are  nearly  the 
same  color  as  the  body,  the  remaining  legs  are  the  same  color  as  in  the 
females.  The  eyes  are  large  and  nearly  meet  on  the  crest  of  the  head."  * 
No  serious  attempt  has  yet  been  made  to  destroy  these  insects  or 
to  prevent  their  multiplication.  Sirrine  applied  kerosene  emulsion  to 
infested  spinach  leaves  in  1895,  but  without  success.  It  was  by  him 
at  first  supposed  that  deep  plowing  and  rolling  of  infested  fields  in  fall 
would  bury  the  pupae  to  a  depth  such  that  the  flies  emerging  could  not 
escape,  but  experiments  showed  that  they  could  work  their  way  through 
at  least  eight  inches  of  dirt.  Leaves  of  beets  in  badly  infested  fields 
should  undoubtedly  be  destroyed,  since  many  of  them  will  contain  the 
insect  at  the  time  of  beet  harvest;  and  the  presence  of  this  insect  serves 
to  emphasize  the  general  recommendations  made  with  respect  to  sup- 
pression of  pigweeds  and  other  fleshy  vegetation,  in  the  leaves  of  which 
certain  of  these  flies  are  said  to  breed. 


Leaves  not  eaten,  but  definitely  and  minutely  specked  or  blotched  with 
white  or  yellowish.  Small  green,  yellowish,  or  grayish,  hopping  insects 
on  the  leaves. 

THE   LEAF-HOPPERS. 
Jassoidea  and  Delphacina. 

Everywhere  in  the  fields  and  grass-lands  and  on  the  leaves  of  trees, 
from  early  summer  onward,  small,  rather  slender,  soft-bodied  and  very 
active  insects  may  be  found  in  abundance,  usually  greenish  or  grayish, 
often  prettily  marked  with  black  or  with  brighter  colors,  the  younger 
ones  wingless,  the  adults  with  wings  like  those  of  grasshoppers  in  posi- 
tion when  at  rest.  They  vary  from  an  eighth  to  half  an  inch  in  length, 
most  of  them  being  of  the  smaller  size.  They  infest  a  very  great  variety 
of  plants,  and  about  thirty  different  species  have  been  found  on  beets. 
These  are  the  leaf-hoppers — a  name  given  them  because  they  are  found 
mainly  on  leaves  and  because  they  hop  vigorously  when  alarmed. 

Their  mouth  parts  form  a  sharp-pointed  beak,  directed  downwards 
and  backwards  between  the  fore  legs  when  at  rest,  and  with  this  beak 
they  puncture  the  leaves  and  soft  stems  of  plants,  sucking  out  the  sap 
for  food.  Individually  their  injuries  are  insignificant,  amounting  to 
scarcely  more  than  the  draining  of  a  few  plant  cells  of  sap  for  each 
meal;  but  the  total  effect  of  their  attack  for  the  entire  season,  especially 
when  circumstances  favor  an  extraordinary  increase  of  their  numbers, 
is  sometimes  serious  and  may  become  destructive.  The  immediate 
effect  of  their  presence  is  seen  in  the  appearance  of  small  pale  specks 

*  From  the  Fourteenth  Ann.  Rep.  N.  Y.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  pp.  629,  ^30 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  411 

on  the  surface  of  the  infested  leaf,  each  speck  representing  a  point  of 
plant  tissue  deadened  by  the  withdrawal  of  its  living  substance.  A  mul- 
tiplication of  these  dead  blotches  interferes  with  the  performance  of 
the  function  of  the  leaf,  checks  the  growth  of  the  plant,  and,  if  exces- 
sive, may  cause  parts  of  it  to  die.  Sometimes  on  the  young  leaf  the 
injurious  effect  extends  some  distance  beyond  the  puncture,  as  shown 
by  a  discolored  stripe  extending  towards  the  tip  of  the  leaf.  The  attack 
begins  in  early  spring,  and  is  continued  without  cessation  until  fall,  the 
numbers  of  these  insects  increasing  with  the  advance  of  the  season  as 
the  various  species  breed  in  successive  generations. 

The  eggs  are  laid,  as  a  rule,  in  the  stems  and  leaves  of  plants  or 
between  the  leaf-sheaths  and  stems  of  grass-like  plants  which  have  en- 
sheathing  leaves.  In  an  outdoor  breeding-cage  containing  blue-grass 
and  timothy  a  large  number  of  grass  leaf-hoppers  in  considerable  variety 
were  placed  September  10.  From  September  19  to  October  22  numer- 
ous minute  eggs  were  found  inserted  side  by  side  in  a  symmetrical  row 
in  the  sheaths  of  the  timothy.  They  were  slightly  curved,  slender- 
elliptical  in  form,  at  first  translucent  yellowish  and  later  reddish.  These 
eggs  were  not  hatched,  but  their  resemblance  to  known  eggs  of  leaf- 
hoppers  appears  sufficient  for  their  identification.  The  various  species 
hibernate  as  eggs  or  as  adults,  with  which  larvae  are  sometimes  mingled. 
Those  which  pass  the  winter  as  adults  begin  to  deposit  their  eggs  in 
spring  as  soon  as  the  season  opens,  and  the  young  from  these  and  from 
hibernating  eggs  of  the  preceding  year  become  abundant  in  early  sum- 
mer. As  some  species  are  single-brooded  while  others  of  similar  habit 
produce  two  and  three  or  more  generations  in  a  year,  all  stages  of  these 
insects  can  be  found  at  almost  any  time,  and  systematic  discrimination 
"of  generations  can  be  made  by  careful  breeding  experiments  only.  A 
comparison  of  dates  of  collections  made  by  us  in  Illinois  with  those 
made  by  Professor  H.  E.  Summers  in  the  Southern  States  goes  to  show 
that  species  two-brooded  in  Illinois  are  frequently  three-brooded  farther 
south. 

The  leaf-hoppers  are,  on  the  whole,  unusually  free  from  insect 
enemies.  Two  bugs  of  predaceous  habit  feed  on  them  freely,  namely, 
the  damsel-bug  {Coriscus  ferns}  and  the  glassy- winged  soldier-bug 
(Hyaliodef  vitripennis).  Certain  parasites  also  check  their  multiplica- 
tion by  destroying  the  sexual  organs  of  the  adults. 

Leaf-hoppers  have  not  thus  far  been  reported  as  sufficiently  injuri- 
ous to  the  sugar  beet  to  require  special  measures  for  their  destruction. 
The  program  of  agricultural  management  included  under  the  general 
head  of  clean  culture — not  only  for  the  beet  plantation  but  for  the  entire 
farm — will  tend  to  keep  their  numbers  down.  If,  however,  they  become 
seriously  injurious  it  may  profitably  be  remembered  that  they  may  be 
destroyed  by  the  use  of  kerosene  sprays — either  the  emulsion  with  soap 


412  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

or  the  mechanical  mixture  with  water  already  referred  to  on  page  401. 
This  might  perhaps  be  successfully  applied  by  a  simple  apparatus 
recommended  by  Professor  John  B.  Smith  for  the  destruction  of  leaf- 
hoppers  in  potato  fields.  Fouj  nozzles  suitable  for  producing  a  fine 
profuse  spray  are  carried  on  a  horizontal  bar  suspended  from  the  back 
of  the  wagon,  the  nozzles  being  directed  forward  and  a  little  downward. 
A  light  board  is  hung  three  or  four  feet  in  front  of  the  horizontal  bar  to 
stir  up  the  leaf-hoppers  and  expose  them  to  the  fine  kerosene  spray  with 
which  the  air  is  filled.  Arsenical  insecticides  would  of  course  be  with- 
out important  effect,  since  these  are  internal  poisons  and  could  not 
reach  the  digestive  organs  of  a  sucking  insect. 

The  general  aspect  of  the  leaf-hoppers  may  be  easily  recognized 
after  an  examination  of  the  various  figures  in  this  text.  There  is  no 
special  economic  value  in  a  discrimination  of  the  numerous  species  in- 
festing the  beet  or  in  the  details  of  the  life  history  of  each,  but  these 
will  nevertheless  have  a  certain  general  utility  as  an  aid  to  observation 
and  record  by  economic  entomologists,  and  an  attempt  is  therefore 
made  here  to  give  the  most  conspicuous  distinctions  of  each  group 
without  entering  into  difficult  structural  details. 

It  will  first  be  necessary  to  separate  the  leaf  hoppers  known  to  infest 
the  beet  into  four  groups,  distinguished  in  part  by  the  position  of  the 
bead-like  ocelli  which  always  lie  somewhere  between  the  compound 
eyes. 

The  first  group  (PI.  I.),  belonging  to  the  family  Fulgoridcz,  subfamily 
Delphacince,  are  small,  with  clear  membranous  wings  bearing  various 
dark  markings.  The  head  and  thorax  are  acutely  ridged,  and  the 
antennae  have  a  stout  finger-like  base,  with  a  thread-like  terminal  bristle. 
The  ocelli  are  close  in  front  of  the  lower  angle  of  the  'compound  eyes, 
and  there  is  a  conspicuous  movable  spine  at  the  tip  of  the  hind  tibia. 
The  same  species  sometimes  presents  both  long-winged  and  short- 
winged  forms. 

The  remaining  groups  belong  to  the  superfamily  Jassoidea,  with 
opaque  or  tinted  wings,  the  antennal  bristle  rising  from  a  merely  thick- 
ened base,  and  the  ocelli  higher  up  on  the  head.  In  the  second  group 
(Fig.  5-7)  the  species  of  Agallia  only  are  included.  These  are  small 
brownish  strongly  wedge-shaped  insects,  with  head  obtuse  in  front,  and 
the  ocelli  well  up  on  the  face  but  below  the  front  margin  of  the  head. 

The  third  group  (Fig.  8,  9)  includes  the  large  species  treated  in  this 
paper,  those  belonging  to  Oncometopia,  Diedrocephala,  and  Gypona. 
They  range  from  three-sixteenths  to  half  an  inch  in  length.  The  most 
distinctive  characteristic  is  the  position  of  the  ocelli,  which  are  on  the 
flat  top  of  the  head,  bejween  the  eyes. 

The  fourth  group  (Fig.  10,  u;  PI.  II.;  PI.  III.,  Fig.  i,  2)  contains  a 
large  number  of  species,  nearly  all  quite  small  and  variously  colored, 


I9OO.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  413 

with  the  ocelli  wanting  or,  if  present,  situated  on  the  front  edge  of 
the  head. 

The  three  species  of  the  first  group  on  our  list  have  been  but  little 
noticed  by  economic  entomologists.  Stobera  tricarinata  (PI.  I.,  Fig.  i) 
and  Liburnia  ornata  (PL  I.,  Fig.  3)  have  a  broad  brown  cloud  in  the 
shape  of  an  inverted  V  near  the  tip  of  each  wing.  In  Stobera  the  wing 
veins  are  all  spotted  alternately  black  and  white,  and  there  is  a  brown 
spot  on  the  lower  edge  of  the  wing  within  the  inverted  V.  The  head 
and  thorax  are  yellowish  or  brownish  above,  and  the  face  is  barred  with 
black.  Liburnia  ornata  is  most  quickly  recognized  by  a  conspicuous 
narrow  white  line  from  the  middle  of  the  back  over  the  thorax  and  head, 
with  a  black  line  each  side.  It  has  a  clearer  wing,  with  black  dots  on 
the  basal  part  only  of  some  of  the  veins.  Narrow  brown  lines  extend 
from  the  V-shaped  cloud  along  some  of  the  veins. 

Liburnia  puella  (PI.  I.,  Fig.  2)  has  a  black  head  and  thorax  and 
transparent  wings,  each  wing  with  a  brown  spot  at  its  upper  edge  near 
the  middle  of  the  length  of  the  body,  making,  when  the  wings  are  folded, 
a  distinct  brownish  blotch  near  the  middle  of  the  body. 

Four  species  of  Agallia  taken  on  beets  comprise  the  second  of  our 
groups.  In  these  the  narrow  upper  surface  of  the. head  bears  at  least  a 
pair  of  round  black  dots,  and  the  prothorax  usually  has  one  or  two 
pairs  of  dots,  anterior  and  posterior,  with  sometimes  a  longitudinal 
black  line  between  them. 

Agallia  4-punctata  (Fig.  5,  #)  is  yellowish  brown,  the  dots  on  the 
head  distinct  as  well  as  a  pair  on  the  prothorax  close  to  its  hind  margin. 
A.  pair  of  prothoracic  dots  in  front  of  these  and  a  median  dark  line  are 
also  sometimes  present.  The  wings  are  brown,  with  pale  veins.  Agallia 
novella  (Fig.  6,  a),  a  common  Illinois  species,  is  also  yellowish  brown, 
the  imago  often  more  or  less  suffused  with  bronze.  The  head  bears  four 
distinct  black  dots  above,  an  additional  one  on  each  side  being  placed 
behind  the  eyes.  The  posterior  pair  of  thoracic  dots  are  well  marked 
but  commonly  rather  small,  placed  about  half  way  between  the  front 
and  hind  margins,  and  the  median  longitudinal  thoracic  line  is  also 
usually  present.  The  wings  are  pale,  with  paler  veins.  Agallia 
sanguinolenta  (Fig.  7,  a),  our  commonest  species  of  the  genus,  is  com- 
monly darker  brown;  the  dots  on  the  head,  and  usually  the  first  pair  on 
the  prothorax,  are  large  and  distinct,  the  other  markings  not  so  evident. 
The  prothorax  and  the  head  above  are  commonly  streaked  with  darker 
bands,  the  scutellum  bears  a  W-shaped  dusky  mark,  and  the  wings  are 
more  or  less  dusky  brown  with  the  veins  partly  black  and  partly  white. 
Agallia  uhleri,  a  western  species,  is  a  pale  insect  withktwo  dots  on  the 
head  and  only  a  trace  of  the  first  pair  on  the  thorax.  The  wings  are 
whitish  with  the  veins  darker  posteriorly. 

The  nymphs  of  these  species  of  Agallia  present  also  some   evident 


41 4  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AllgUSt, 

distinctions.  That  of  4-punctata  (Fig.  5,  c}  is  dark  with  a  pair  of  sub- 
quadrate  horn-like  processes  projecting  forward  between  the  eyes,  and 
there  is  a  serrate  crest  along  the  middle  of  the  back  of  the  abdomen. 
The  nymph  of  novella  (Fig.  6,  c)  is  similarly  crested,  and  the  top  of 
the  head  projects  somewhat  upwards  but  scarcely  forward;  that  of 
sanguinolenta  (Fig.  7,  c}  has  neither  crest  nor  cephalic  projections, 
but  the  black  head-dots  are  visible.  The  nymph  of  ithleri  we  have 
not  seen. 

Of  the  third  group,  Oncometopia  undata  (Fig.  8)  is  a  full  half  inch 
in  length,  the  wings  are  purplish,  and  the  head  and  scutellum  are  orange 
reticulate  with  black.  Diedrocephala  versuta  is  about  three-sixteenths 
of  an  inch  long,  dark  yellowish  green,  with  one  greenish  blue  and  two 
orange  stripes  on  each  wing  and  some  marginal  black  dots  near  the  tip. 
The  head  is  ornamented  above  with  a  yellowish  submarginal  stripe, 
often  bluish,  and  one  down  the  middle,  both  sharply  defined  by  fine 
black  lines.  Diedrocephala  mollipes  (Fig.  9),  a  very  common  species, 
is  similar  to  the  foregoing  but  larger,  from  a  quarter  to  three-eighths  of 
an  inch  long,  the  wings  dark  green  with  bluish  veins  and  yellow  edges, 
the  head,  scutellum,  and  front  of  thorax  yellowish,  the  first  with  some 
fine  black  lines  irregularly  placed.  Gypona  octolineata  is  a  broad, 
oval,  straw-colored  species,  three-eighths  of  an  inch  long,  the  thorax 
indefinitely  lined  with  yellow  or  reddish,  and  the  ocelli  bright,  but 
pale  red. 

The  last  and  largest  of  the  four  groups  is  difficult  of  satisfactory 
analysis.  Among  the  larger  forms  Platymetopius  acutus  (Fig.  10)  is 
bright  brown  with  ivory-whitish  spots  and  a  notably  broad  and  pointed 
head.  The  wings  have  a  series  of  oblique  black  dashes  along  their 
lower  edge,  and  are  so  shaped  that  they  diverge  behind  the  body  when 
folded,  leaving  a  broad  notch  between  them  at  the  tip.  Eutettix 
seminuda  has  a  short,  broadly  rounded  head  and  a  whitish  back  with  a 
large  light  brown  saddle-mark.  Phlepsius  irroratus  (PI.  III.,  Fig.  2) 
is  whitish  with  a  very  fine  dark  brown  network  on  the  upper  surface, 
giving  the  general  effect  of  a  uniform  light  brown  shade.  It  is  three- 
sixteenths  of  an  inch  in  length,  or  more.  Deltocephalus  inimicus  (Fig. 
12)  is  best  known  by  the  three  similar  pairs  of  large  black  dots,  one  on 
the  head,  one  on  the  prothorax,  and  one  on  the  triangular  scutellum. 
The  wings  have  a  whitish  ground-color  with  brown  margins  to  the  cells. 

Among  the  small  green  species  Deltocephalus  melsheimeri  (Fig.  1 1)  is 
gray-green  without  distinct  markings,  and  its  head  is  unusually  flat  and 
triangular  above.  Deltocephalns  nigrifrons  (PI.  II.,  Fig.  2)  has  a  row 
of  six  small  black^and  nearly  equal  dots  along  the  front  of  the  head  as 
seen  from  above,  and  the  face  is  barred  with  black.  The  two  species 
of  Gnathodus  here  mentioned  are  plain  dark  green  with  very  short  heads, 
the  surface  visible  from  above  having  the  form  of  a  curved  band  of 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  415 

nearly  equal  width  throughout.  In  G.  abdominalis  the  back  of  the 
abdomen  is  brownish,  while  in  G.  impictus  it  is  green  like  the  rest  of  the 
body.  Cicadula  sexnotata  (PI.  II.,  Fig.  i)  has  a  pair  of  black  dots  at 
the  back  of  the  upper  surface  of  the  head,  and  in  front  of  each  of  these 
a  pair  of  black  cross-bars.  The  genus  Empoasca  includes  the  tiny 
yellowish  green  forms  excessively  abundant  in  beet  fields  and  elsewhere. 
E.  mali  (PI.  II.,  Fig.  3)  has  six  white  spots  along  the  front  of  the  pro- 
thorax;  E.  flavescens  (PI.  II.,  Fig.  4)  has  only  three  larger  spots 
in  that  situation;  and  Dicraneura  fieberi  is  somewhat  amber  tinted, 
with  a  pale  cloud  on  the  prothorax.  Late  in  fall  we  once  found  a 
number  of  grape-vine  leaf-hoppers  {Typhlocyba — PI.  III.,  Fig.  i)  on 
young  beets.  These,  like  the  forms  just  mentioned,  are  very  small  and 
delicate,  but  are  brightly  marked  with  black,  ivory-white,  red,  and 
other  colors. 

Stobera  tricarinata  Say. 
{Delphax  tricarinata  Say,  Liburnia  intertexta  Uhl.  MS.*) 

(PI.  I.,  Fig.  i.) 

This  common  leaf-hopper  ranges  from  Canada  and  New  Jersey  as 
far  south  as  Texas  and  west  to  California.  We  have  taken  it  occasion- 
ally on  sugar  beets,  and  Bruner  has  recorded  it  as  a  beet  insect  under 
the  name  Liburnia  intertexta.  We  have  collected  it  in  sweeping  grass 
and  weeds  and  once  saw  it  puncturing  a  blade  of  corn. 

It  hibernates  as  an  adult.  Our  data  indicate  that  this  leaf-hopper 
is  two-brooded.  Adults  have  been  taken  by  us  principally  in  the  fall 
months  and  December  and  again  in  April  and  May  (the  hibernating 
brood),  and  at  the  end  of  June  and  in  July  (the  second  brood). 

Libnrnia  ornata  Stal. 

(PI.  I.,  Fig.  3.) 

This  pretty  little  insect  ranges  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Atlantic 
coast;  and  it  is  not  rare  in  the  sugar-beet  fields  of  Illinois.  Its 
life  history  is  apparently  like  that  of  the  preceding  species.  It  has  been 
taken  by  us  in  large  numbers  in  November  in  central  Illinois,  and  in 
April  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state.  It  thus  seems  to  hibernate  as 
an  adult.  We  have  again  found  it  abundant  on  grasses,  grains,  and 
weeds  in  central  Illinois  in  July  and  in  southern  Illinois  in  August — a 
plain  indication  of  a  second  brood. 

*Concerning  this  name  Mr.  E.  P.  Van  Duzee  writes  us  under  date  of  October  20,  1899,  as  follows: 
"In  the  National  Museum  is  a  pale  specimen  that  so  far  as  I  can  discover  does  not  differ  in  any  re- 
spect from  the  females  of  Stobera  tricarinata  Say,  bearing  a  label  Liburnia  intertexta  Uhler.  The 
name  seems  never  to  have  been  published.  If  no  transposition  has  been  made  at  the  Museum  you  will- 
be  perfectly  safe  in  quoting  this  as  the  female  of  Say's  species.  This  is  taken  from  some  unpublished 
notes  of  mine  on  this  family  " 


416 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


Liburnia  puella  Van  D. 

(PI.  I.,  Fig.  2.) 

This  species  is  recorded  from  Iowa,  Mississippi,  New  York,  and 
New  Jersey,  and  seems  to  have  a  more  southerly  range  than  L.  ornata. 
We  have  taken  it  repeatedly  on  sugar  beets  on  the  University  farm  in 
July  and  October.  In  our  general  collections  it  is  recorded  for  central 
Illinois  from  grass,  grains,  and  various  low  plants  in  July  and  again  in 
the  fall  up  to  about  the  middle  of  November;  also,  in  August,  for  ex- 
treme southern  Illinois.  It  is  thus  probably  two-brooded,  hibernating 
as  an  adult. 

Agallia  4-punctata   Prov. 
.(A.  punctata  Kenyon. ) 


Fig.  5.  Agallia  4-punctata:  a,  adult;  6,  nymph,  side  view;  c,  nymph,  dorsal  view;  d,  face; 
e,  elytron;  _/",  female,  g,  male  genitalia.  (Osborn  and  Ball.) 

This  seems  to  be  a  northerly  species,  ranging  from  Canada  and 
New  York  to  Colorado,  Arkansas,  and  Kentucky.  It  is  moderately 
common  in  Illinois,  but  did  not  appear  in  our  last  summer's  collections 
from  the  sugar  beet.  It  has  been  found  on  beets  in  Iowa,  however,  by 
Professor  Herbert  Osborn,  whose  studies  have  contributed  much  to  our 
knowledge  of  the  leaf-hoppers  of  this  genus.  The  species  under  con- 
sideration he  says  is  "single  brooded,  the  adult  appearing  in  early 
spring,  the  females  remaining  until  into  July,  The  eggs  are  probably 
all  deposited  by  the  middle  of  June,  from  which  the  larvae  appear  in 
July,  and  by  fall  are  nearly  or  quite  full  grown,  passing  the  winter  and 
issuing  as  adults  again  early  the  next  spring."  This  species  has  been 
found  on  a  great  variety  of  plants,  mostly  Composite,  such  as  sunflower 
and  boneset  (^Eupatoriinn),  Cruciferce,  Chenopodiacea  and  their  garden 
relatives,  beets,  horseradish,  cabbage,  spinach,  etc.  "The  larvae  re- 
main on  or  near  the  ground  and  conceal  themselves  in  the  rubbish  and 
humus,  for  which  their  color  and  appearance  is  peculiarly  adapted." 
They  usually  occur  in  woods  and  similar  shaded  situations,  but  also  on 


1900 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


417 


plants,  as  mentioned  above,  whose  abundant  foliage  furnishes  the 
requisite  shade.  The  adults  are  usually  found  on  the  younger  portions 
of  the  stem. 

Agallia   novella  Say. 
(Macropsis   nobilis,  i4th  Rep.  State  Ent.  111.,  p.  22.) 


Fig.  6.  Agallia  novella:  a,  adult;  6,  nymph,  side  view;  c,  nymph,  dorsal  view;  d,  face;  e,  elytron; 
f,  female,  g-,  male  genitalia;  h,  male,  side  view.  (Osborn  and  Ball.) 

Osborn  reports  this  species  also  as  occurring  on  sugar  beets  in 
Iowa.  Its  recorded  range  is  similar  to  that  of  the  preceding  species, 
and  it  also  occurs  in  Mexico  and  Vancouver,  having  evidently  a  very 
wide  distribution  over  this  country.  We  have  collected  it  both  in  fields 
and  woods,  from  rye,  blue-grass,  strawberries,  various  grasses  and 
weeds,  and  from  grape-vines,  red  cedar,  apple,  and  pear.  In  the  Four- 
teenth Report  from  the  Office  of  the  State  Entomologist  of  Illinois  (p. 
22)  it  is  referred  to  as  injurious  to  corn.  Specimens  sent  to  Uhler  pre- 
vious to  that  time  had  been  named  by  him  Macropsis  nobilis  Harr.,  and 
this  name — by  which  M.  novellus  Say  was  probably  meant — was  there 
used  to  designate  it.  It  is  a  common  Illinois  species,  but  did  not  ap- 
pear last  summer  among  the  leaf-hoppers  seen  by  us  on  sugar  beets. 
Like  the  preceding,  it  winters  over  in  the  nymphal  stage.  The  hiber- 
nating nymphs  transform  more  slowly  than  those  of  A.  ^.-punctata,  and 
the  adults  from  them  are  common  till  near  the  end  of  July.  These  pro- 
duce young  in  August — about  a  month  later  than  4-punctata — which 
approach  maturity  by  fall,  and  winter  over  in  leaves  and  rubbish. 

Agallia  sanguinolenta  Prov. 
{Bythoscopus  siccifolius  Bruner. ) 

This  species,  our  commonest  Agallia,  seems  to  range  over  nearly  the 
whole  United  States,  and  is  also  found  in  Mexico  and  British  America. 


4i8 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


It  was  first  recorded  as  a  sugar-beet  insect  by  Bruner,  and  on  account 
of  its  abundance  and  its  fondness  for  beets  this  leaf-hopper  may  now 
and  then  give  trouble.  Osborn  speaks  of  it  as  a  persistent  beet  feeder, 


Fig.   7.     Agallia  sanguinolinta :     a,   adult;  b,  nymph,  side  view;  c,   nymph,    dorsal   view;  d,   face 
e,  elytron;/",  female,  g,  male  genitalia.     (Osborn  and  Ball.) 

and  in  the  sugar-beet  plats  on  the  Illinois  University  farm  it  was  fre- 
quently noted,  becoming  very  abundant  in  October. 

Unlike  A.  punctata  it  prefers  open  sunny  localities,  avoiding  damp 
shady  woods.  It  is  particularly  destructive  to  clover,  and  in  addition  to 
sugar  beets  attacks  also  celery,  turnips,  cabbage,  strawberries,  blue-grass 
(to  some  extent),  and  a  variety  of  weeds — especially  pigweed  and  lamb's- 
quarters  (Amarantusand  Chenopodium).  Its  punctures  cause  small  white 
spots  on  blue  grass  leaves.  The  larva  keeps  near  the  ground  and  hides 
under  rubbish.  Its  life  history  differs  a  little  /rom  that  of  the  species  of 
the  genus  mentioned  above.  It  seems  to  hibernate  mostly  as  an  adult, 
under  various  sorts  of  rubbish — old  boards,  hay,  and  other  like  shelter. 
We  have  taken  it  in  such  situations  in  December.  In  Osborn's  breeding- 
cages  eggs  were  found  inserted  beneath  the  cuticle  of  the  clover  leaf 
along  the  midrib  of  the  blade,  though  most  were  probably  laid  in  the 
leaf  stems  or  in  the  bases  of  the  plants.  The  first  larvae  from  spring 
eggs  appeared  May  20th,  and  began  to  mature  by  July  ist.  Later,  all 
stages  could  be  found  together  until  on  the  approach  of  winter  the  young 
all  gradually  became  adult. 

Agallia  uhleri  Van  D. 

This  western  species  is  recorded  from  garden  and  sugar  beets  in 
Colorado  by  Gillette  and  Baker  ('-Hemiptera  of  Colorado,"  p.  81), 
and  also  from  Sisymbrium  canescens  and  alfalfa.  Various  dates  are  given 
from  May  yth  to  October  i5th.  The  life  history  is  not  known. 

Oncometopia  undata  Fabr. 

This  largest  of  our  leaf-hoppers  was  found  on  sugar  beets  at  Urbana 
during  the  latter  part  of  June.  It  seems  to  be  especially  a  grape  insect, 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


419 


sometimes  seriously  injuring  the  vines  and  the  fruit — 
according  to  Walsh,  laying  its  eggs  in  the  stems,  thus 
checking  the  growth,  and  puncturing  the  stems  of  the 
clusters,  thus  causing  them  to  drop  off.  It  is  a  greedy 
feeder,  in  many  cases  seemingly  pumping  out  more  sap 
Fig.  s.  Oncometo-  than  it  needs,  and  ejecting  this  backward  in  a  rapid  suc- 
lta"  cession  of  tiny  drops.  It  is  not  confined  to  the  ggrape,  but 
may  be  seen  clinging  in  numbers  to  the  stems  of  the  blackberry,  rasp- 
berry, corn,  okra,  sunflower,  and  some  common  weeds.  Being  a  very 
large  and  common  leaf-hopper,  pretty  well  distributed  over  the  eastern 
United  States,  it  may  well  deserve  attention.  It  is  more  especially  a 
southern  species,  and  in  Illinois  is  commonest  in  the  southern  part. 

Very  little  is  known  of  its  yearly  history.  Walsh  surmises  that  it 
hibernates  as  an  egg,  the  slits  which  he  attributes  to  this  species  con: 
taining  empty  shells  in  July.  Our  dates  for  the  adults  range  from  the 
middle  of  May  to  the  middle  of  July  in  Illinois,  and  to  September  xoth 
in  the  Southern  States. 

Diedrocephala  versuta  Say. 

This  green-and-blue-striped  leaf-hopper  of  the  Southern  States 
ranges  north  into  central  Illinois,  but  is  not  so  common  here  as  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  state.  Examples  were  found  at  Urbana  early  in 
October  on  sugar  beets  in  the  Experiment  Station  plats.  It  has  a  variety 
of  food  plants,  and  in  the  South  is  very  abundant  on  cotton  but  not 
seriously  injurious.  Osborn  says  that  it  is  similar  in  habits  ioD.  coccinea, 
feeding  in  quiet  sheltered  spots  near  thickets  or  woods. 

Diedrocephala  mollipes  Say. 

We  have  in  this  large  dull  green  leaf-hopper  one  of  the  commonest 
of   our  larger  species,  rarely  abundant  enough,  however,  to  be  econom- 
ically important.    Jts  range  includes 
the  United  States,  Canada,  Mexico? 

1^^^^         T  WW        T  XM/    and  Cuba>     It  was  found  frequently 
J&ftL  JdtiC      on  sugar  beets  in  October  at  Urbana, 

/^Mf k      1  /2R3K        /MV 

but  it  feeds  principally  on  sedges, 
grasses,  and  grain  plants,  including 
corn.  The  nymphs  are  light  green 
or  yellowish,  with  sharply  pointed 
heads  as  in  the  adults. 

There    are    two    broods    of    this 
species    in    a    year.     The   eggs   are 

laid  in  rank  grasses  and  sedges  on  low  grounds,  and  although  we  have 
found  the  adult  in  winter  shelter  as  late  as  December  i8th,  the  winter  is 
passed  mostly  in  the  egg  stage.  Probably  a  few  nymphs  also  hibernate. 


Fig.    9.      Diedrocephala   mollifies;    a,    young 
nymph;  t,  older  nymph;  c,  adult.     (Osborn.) 


420  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AugUSt, 

Most  of  the  eggs  hatch  in  May,  the  larvae  becoming  common  in  .early 
summer.  In  June  these  begin  to  transform  to  adults.  We  have  taken 
the  latter  in  large  numbers  at  electric  lights  in  the  first  half  of  June,  and 
found  them  laying  eggs  for  a  second  brood  July  i6th  and  22d.  The  eggs 
were  placed  in  the  pith  and  woody  tissue  of  bulrushes  {Scirpus  fluv iatilis} 
and  in  the  substance  of  the  leaf  sheath  and  blades.  June  23d  to  25th 
these  insects  were  noted  as  common  on  corn,  and  one  was  seen  in  the 
act  of  laying  its  eggs  in  a  corn  leaf.  The  second  brood  of  larvae  appear 
in  August  and  September,  transforming  in  fall  to  adults.  These,  again, 
gather  in  low  grounds,  and  most  of  them  lay  eggs  and  die  before  cold 
weather. 

The  species  abounds  especially  on  reedy  grasses  of  the  salt  marshes 
of  the  Atlantic  coast.  In  Kentucky  it  suffered  severely  in  late  July  and 
early  August  from  a  parasitic  fungus,  Empusa  grylli.  It  is  probable  that 
the  burning  of  slough  grass  and  the  like  vegetation  in  winter  would  be 
a  useful  measure  of  protection  against  injury  by  this  insect. 

Gypona  8-lineata  Say. 

This  leaf-hopper,  fairly  common  in  Illinois,  occurs  over  the  eastern 
United  States  from  Canada  to  Texas.  It  has  occasionally  appeared  in 
our  sugar-beet  collections  from  the  Experiment  Station  farm.  Osborn 
says  that  it  does  not  seem  to  be  confined  to  any  particular  food  plant, 
but  may  be  found  almost  everywhere,  preferring  rank  growths  in  shaded 
situations.  The  color  deepens  and  changes  with  the  season's  advance, 
most  of  the  first  brood  and  the  earliest  of  the  second  being  light  green 
with  indefinite  yellow  lines  and  weak  elytral  reticulations;  and  the  last 
of  the  first  and  nearly  all  of  the  second,  dark  green,  with  strongly  reticu- 
late elytra.  In  September  and  October  the  lines  tend  to  become  red, 
and  females  may  be  found  almost  wholly  scarlet  dorsally.  (Osborn.) 
Although  our  other  species  of  Gypona  are  apparently  one-brooded,  this 
has  two  broods  in  a  year.  The  adults  of  the  first  brood  appear  in  late 
June  and  in  July,  and  those  of  the  second  in  fall.  They  are  most  abun- 
dant with  us  about  the  end  of  June,  when  they  have  been  taken  in  large 
numbers  at  electric  lights.  The  nymphal  stages  of  these  broods  are 
commonest  in  June,  and  in  August  and  September,  respectively.  There 
is  no  record  of  the  capture  of  hibernating  adults,  and  the  species  proba- 
bly winters  in  the  egg.  The  head  is  noticeably  wide,  broadly  rounded 
in  front,  and  slightly  shovel  shaped.  The  front  of  the  head  in  the  larva 
is  more  elongate  and  very  thin,  the  sides  parallel  in  front  of  the  eyes, 
and  the  tip  broadly  rounded. 

Platymetopius  acuttts   Say. 

This  leaf-hopper  is  notably  different  from  the  other  small  beet- 
species  in  the  pointed  elongate  head  which  has  the  form  of  an  equal- 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


421 


Fig.  10.     Platymetopius 
acutus,  adult. 


Fig. 

b,  face;c, 
e,  male  g 
Ball.) 


side  triangle.  The  nymph  has  a  light  stripe  down 
the  center,  red  at  the  middle  and  tending  to  sep- 
arate into  two  spots  upon  the  back  of  the  abdo- 
men, with  a  black  marginal  stripe  on  each  side. 
Gillette  reports  it  from  sugar  beets,  sumach,  clem- 
atis, and  oak.  It  occurs  mostly  on  grass  and 
weeds,  especially  in  shady  situations.  Davis  lists 
it  among  the  celery  leaf-hoppers.  We  have  taken 
the  nymph  on  apple  May  i5th.  The  species  is 
found  in  Canada  and  the  United  States  as  far 
west  as  the  Rocky  Mountains.  There  are  two 
broods  annually,  adults  of  the  first  commonly 
occurring  from  June  i5th  to  July  i5th,  and  of 
the  second  from  the  early  part  of  August  to 
the  approach  of  winter.  Nymphs  are  common 
late  in  May  and  in  June  and  again  in  July 
and  August.  Its  stage  of  hibernation  is  not 
definitely  known. 

Deltocephalus  melsheimeri  Fitch. 

This  was  one  of  the  leaf-hoppers 
taken  in  summer  and  fall  on  sugar- 
beets  at  the  Experiment  Station 
farm.  It  is  especially  a  grass  in- 
sect, sometimes  present  in  myriads 
in  lawns  and  pastures,  but  avoiding 
shaded  situations.  The  eggs  are 
laid  in  fall  in  grass,  and  the  adults 
do  not  survive  the  winter.  There 
are  apparently  three  broods  in  the 
year.  Adults,  presumably  from 
hibernating  eggs,  occur  in  late  May 
and  in  June,  and  there  is  a  brood  of 
nymphs  from  the  last  of  May  into 
July,  becoming  adult  in  July  and 
August.  The  next  brood  of  nymphs 
is  produced  in  August  and  early 
September,  maturing  and  laying 
eggs  by  the  close  of  the  season. 
These  successive  changes  are  about 

ii.  Deltocephalus  melsheimeri:    a,  adult;     tWO  Weeks  earlier    than   thOSC    Of    the 
head  and  pronotum  from  above;  d,  female,     -    11         .  .          /•  r-«      •     •      •         % 

;enitalia:y :  wing;  g.  nymph.   (Osborn  and     following  SpCCieS    (D.    tmmiCUS~). 


422 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


Deltocephalus  inimicus  Say. 
{Jassus  inimicus  Say. ) 

This  is  one  of  the  four  or  five  species  of  leaf-hoppers  most  abundant 
in  beet  fields,  and  most  likely  to  cause  trouble  there.  It  is  widely  dis- 
tributed over  this  country  and 
into  Canada,  and  is  one  of  the 
most  persistent  and  destructive 
leaf-hoppers  of  pastures  and 
meadows.  It  was  especially  com- 
mon last  season  on  beets  during 
the  early  part  of  October,  and 
has  also  been  reported  from  cel- 
ery, corn,  and  buckwheat;  but  its 
preferred  food  is  evidently  grass. 
Its  life  history  has  been  very 
thoroughly  studied  by  Osborn. 
The  eggs,  he  says,  have  been 
found  inserted  beneath  the  epi- 
dermis of  blue-grass  blades,  form- 
ing minute  blister-like  swellings 
near  the  tips  of  the  leaves,  the 
end  of  the  leaf  beyond  this  in- 
variably turning  yellow  and 
dying.  Webster  secured  the  eggs 
in  wheat  leaves.  The  nymphs 

Fig.  12.  Deltocephalus  inimicus:  a.adult;  i.face          are  mOStly  light  yellowish,  with   a 
c,  head  and  pronotum  from  above;  d,  female,  e,  male,         u          J      Ul       1  u        'A 

..  .     broad    black   margin   each    side, 

genitaha;/,  elytron;  g,  nymph.     (Osborn  and  Ball.) 

the    head    obtusely   rounded    in 

front.  At  intervals  of  seven  to  eight  days  they  fix  themselves  upon  the 
grass  blades,  head  upward,  and  shed  their  skins,  which  split  along  the 
back,  permitting  the  insects  to  struggle  out.  The  cast  skins  remain  for 
some  time  clinging  to  the  grass  blades.  Three  molts  occur  (Osborn, 
Webster)  from  the  egg  to  the  adult. 

Like  most  jassids  this  species  winters  in  the  egg  stage,  hatching  in 
great  numbers  in  grass-lands  early  in  May.  The  young  mature  during 
the  first  half  of  June,  the  adults  thus  produced  mostly  disappearing  by  the 
middle  of  July.  These  lay  eggs  which  hatch  after  ten  or  fifteen  days, 
the  nymphs  becoming  adult  in  about  a  month,  beginning,  that  is,  about 
the  middle  of  August.  Eggs  are  then  laid  for  the  next  season's  brood, 
and  the  adults  laying  them  perish  by  the  time  winter  sets  in.  There  are 
thus  two  broods  yearly,  the  larvae  being  most  numerous  in  late  May  and 
in  August,  and  the  adults  in  June  and  in  the  fall.  Large  numbers  of  the 
latter  appeared  here  at  electric  lights  June  3-18. 


1900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          423 

Osborn  noticed  that  as  many  as  ten  per  cent,  of  the  larvae  found  in 
spring  were  infested  by  red  mites. 

Deltocephahis  nigrifrons  Forbes. 

{Cicadula  nigrifrons  Forbes.) 

(PI.  II.,  Fig.  2.) 

This  leaf-hopper,  abundant  in  Illinois  beet  fields,  is  also  a  destruc- 
tive grass  pest  and  has  been  recorded  as  injurious  to  corn,  wheat,  and 
oats.  It  is  known  from  New  York,  Louisiana,  and  California,  and  in- 
termediate localities,  and  is  very  common  in  Illinois.  Two  forms  exist, 
one  larger  and  lighter  colored  than  the  other,  with  defective  wing  vena- 
tion, and  using  its  wings  comparatively  little.  These  differences  are 
perhaps  to  be  connected,  like  those  of  the  two  broods  of  Oncometopia 
undata,  with  differences  of  brood  and  season. 

No  adults  of  the  species  have  been  taken  in  winter,  and  it  almost 
certainly  hibernates  in  the  egg.  There  are  probably  two  broods,  adults 
of  the  first  generation  being  abundant  in  June  and  July  and  those  of  the 
second  in  fall.  We  noted  them  here  in  large  numbers  at  electric  lights 
June  3d  to  yth  and  again  June  i5th.  Nymphs  are  common  about  the 
first  of  June  and  in  August. 

Athysanus  sp. 

Bruner  reports  an  undetermined  genus  of  this  species  as  occurring 
upon  the  beet  in  Nebraska.* 

Eutettix  seminuda  Say. 

This  is  not  a  very  common  leaf-hopper,  but  as  it  has  frequently 
been  observed  on  beets  it  is  included  here.  It  is  found  in  the  eastern 
United  States  and  in  Canada,  and  has  attracted  economic  notice  only  as  a 
cotton  insect.  It  is  often  seen  on  cotton  stalks  in  Mississippi,  and  has 
been  observed  to  feed  upon  this  plant  by  Mr.  Ashmead,  who  remarks 
that  it  is  a  very  omnivorous  feeder,  not  likely  to  cause  serious  injury  to 
any  one  plant.  It  is  also  recorded  on  birch,  wild  black  cherry,  and 
various  bushes  and  low  trees.  Littl'e  is  known  of  its  life  history,  but 
the  season  of  occurrence  of  adults  corresponds  fairly  well  with  that  of 
the  next  species.  It  has  been  taken  in  the  South  from  the  middle  of 
May,  and  in  Illinois  from  about  the  middle  of  June  to  the  end  of 
October. 

Eutettix  tenella  Uhl. 

Recorded  by  Gillette  and  Baker  as  common  on  sugar  beets  in 
August.  The  species  probably  does  not  occur  in  Illinois. 

*Bull.  No.  23,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.(  Div.  Ent.,  p.  r7. 


424  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

Phlcpsius  irroratus  Say. 

{Allygus  irroratus  Say.) 

(PI.  III.,  Fig.  2.) 

This  also  is  not  especially  a  grass  insect,  but  attacks  a  great  variety 
of  plants.  It  ranges  from  Canada  and  Massachusetts  on  the  east  to 
Iowa  and  Kansas  on  the  west,  and  is  abundant  in  Illinois.  A  number 
of  specimens  were  taken  on  sugar  beets  in  various  parts  of  the  state  in 
June,  September,  and  October.  It  is  recorded  on  low  herbage  (Say), 
on  willows  and  other  plants  in  damp  places  (Uhler),  on  bushes  and 
trees  (Van  Duzee),  on  celery  (Davis),  on  apple  (Gillette  and  Baker), 
on  hickory  (Packard),  on  grasses  and  grains  (Osborn),  and  in  dry  weedy 
grass-lands  (Van  Duzee).  We  have  found  it  abundant  in  young  wheat  in 
Illinois.  It  causes  the  dark  purple  spotting  often  seen  on  the  leaves  of 
lamb's-quarters,  and  probably  a  similar  discoloration  common  on  beet 
leaves  (U.  S.  Bull.  23,  p.  17).  Bruner  mentions  an  undetermined  Allygus 
— very  likely  this  or  some  other  Phlepsius — as  frequent  on  beets  and 
causing  the  spotting  of  lamb's-quarters.  We  once  found  a  small  bass- 
wood  brush  swarming  with  this  species  in  October.  The  leaves  were 
noticeably  faded  and  spotted  with  blackish  points.  The  adults  seem 
quite  uniformly  distributed  through  their  season,  which  is  from  late 
May  to  about  the  middle  of  October,  though  they  are  especially  abun- 
dant in  June  and  the  first  part  of  July,  and  again  in  fall.  There  are 
probably  two  broods,  and  the  winter  is  presumably  passed  in  the  egg 
stage  as  there  is  no  record  of  winter  collections  of  the  adult. 

Thamnotettix  belli  Uhl. 

This  is  recorded  only  from  Canada,  Michigan,  and  Colorado.  It  is 
included  here  on  the  authority  of  Gillette  and  Baker,  who  have  reported 
its  occurrence  on  cultivated  beet,  alfalfa,  and  Artemisia  tridentata  in 
Colorado,  the  dates  given  ranging  from  May  8th  to  August  i8th. 

Gnathodus  abdominalis  Van  D. 
Gnathodus  impictus  Van  D. 

The  two  species  of  this  genus  here  mentioned  are  recognizable  by 
their  short  transverse  heads  and  somewhat  dull  green  color.  They  are 
about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long.  Both  seem  widely  scattered  east  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  have  been  taken  with  other  leaf-hoppers  on 
sugar  beets,  but  they  are  not  common  enough  as  yet  to  be  of  any 
economic  importance.  Both  occur  in  Illinois  on  corn  and  rye.  We 
have  taken  abdominalis  from  wheat  and  grass,  and  Gillette  and  Baker 
record  it  from  sugar  beets  and  barley.  We  have  found  impictus  on  sugar 
beets,  wheat,  rye,  blue-grass  and  other  grasses,  and  in  groves.  The 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          425 

data  as  to  their  life  history  are  too  scanty  to  show  the  number  of  broods. 
Abdominalis  has  been  taken  mostly  in  June  and  August,  while  our  speci- 
mens of  impictus  were  nearly  all  captured  in  May  and  July. 

Cicadula  6-notata  Fall. 
(Cicadula  4,-lineata  Forbes.) 

(PI.  II.,  Fig.  i.) 

The  two  pairs  of  black  bars  and  two  dots  on  the  head  above  form 
the  unmistakable  trade-mark  of  this  little  green  species,  one  of  the  most 
abundant  in  Illinois  beet  fields  throughout  the  season.  It  has  a  wide  but 
rather  northerly  distribution, — reaching  to  Canada,  Connecticut,  Mis- 
sissippi, California,  and  Alaska, — and  a  great  variety  of  food  plants, 
among  which  the  grasses  and  small  grains  take  a  prominent  place. 
Davis  records  it  as  the  most  abundant  of  the  celery  leaf-hoppers.  We 
have  reported  it  as  especially  injurious  to  wheat  (Fourteenth  Report, 
page  68),  and  have  also  collected  it  from  oats,  corn,  sorghum,  blue- 
grass  and  other  grasses,  apple,  elm,  willow,  cucumbers,  dog-fennel,  and 
other  weeds.  No  adults  have  been  taken  later  than  the  middle  of 
November  or  before  the  middle  of  May.  The  species  doubtless  hiber- 
nates as  an  egg.  Apparently  there  are  two  broods,  the  adults  being 
most  abundant  in  the  latter  half  of  May  and  in  June,  and  again  in  the 
fall  months — from  September  ist  to  the  close  of  the  season. 

Dicraneura  fieberi  Loew. 

This  leaf-hopper  closely  resembles  the  species  next  mentioned,  but 
it  is  slightly  larger  and  more  amber-colored,  and  without  definite  mark- 
ings on  the  thorax,  the  most  important  difference  being  in  the  wing 
venation.  It  has  occasionally  been  taken  by  us  on  sugar  beets  in  Illinois. 
It  is  found  from  Massachusetts  to  Kansas,  but  it  is  not  very  abundant. 
We  have  taken  it  also  on  grass-lands  and  in  woods,  and  on  elm  and  soft 
maple-trees.  Specimens  have  been  taken  from  late  in  May  through 
July,  and  again  from  near  the  end  of  August  to  early  in  November,  thus 
indicating  two  broods  and  hibernation  in  the  egg. 

Empoasca  mail  LeBaron. 
{Empoa  albopicta  Forbes.) 

(PI.  II.,  Fig.  3.) 

Although  not  destructive  in  grass-lands,  this  delicate  little  shining- 
winged,  yellow-green  insect  is  probably  our  worst  all-round  leaf-hopper 
«  pest,  so  excessively  abundant  that  notwithstanding  its  varied  diet  it  is 
able  to  make  a  serious  attack  on  quite  a  number  of  the  cultivated  plants 
of  its  list.  It  is  extremely  abundant  on  sugar  beets  everywhere,  both  in 
the  nymph  and  adult  stages,  thus  showing  its  ability  to  breed  on  this 


426  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt ', 

plant.  It  is  probably  the  species  mentioned  by  Bruner  in  his  list  of  beet 
insects  as  Erythroneura  sp.  It  was  first  named  and  studied  as  an  apple 
insect,  and  as  such  in  nurseries  probably  does  the  greatest  damage;  but 
it'  is  also  injurious  to  raspberries  and  garden  vegetables,  especially 
potatoes  and  celery,  to  clover,  corn,  and  sorghum.  It  is  further 
recorded  in  our  notes  on  black  walnut,  Ptelea  trifoliata,  and  elm,  as 
well  as  on  oats,  rye,  grass,  and  some  weeds,  and  by  Gilette  on  beans, 
plum,  wild  grape,  and  cottonwood.  Nymphs  have  been  observed  on 
celery,  and  other  plants,  as  well  as  on  apple. 

On  infested  young  apple-trees  the  injury  is  very  evident.  The 
leaves  curl  and  crinkle  and  the  internodes  are  shortened,  showing 
retardation  of  growth.  No  local  effect  of  their  punctures  on  beets  has 
been  recognized,  but  in  view  of  the  large  numbers  usually  present  in 
beet  fields  there  is  good  reason  to  believe  them  capable  of  injury  to 
beets.  What  we  supposed  to  be  the  eggs  of  this  species  were  found  in 
slight  swellings  in  the  green  twigs  and  the  midrib  and  leaf  stem  of  the 
apple.  The  nymphs  are  pale  green. 

There  is  considerable  uncertainty  in  using  the  statements  of  others 
concerning  this  insect  because  of  the  frequency  with  which  it  has  been 
confused  with  other  small  greenish  or  yellowish  species  of  its  own  and 
related  genera,  descriptions  and  figures  of  which  may  be  found  in 
Gillette's  article  on  the  Typhlocybina  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  U.  S. 
National  Museum,  Volume  XX.,  page  709.  The  row  of  six  (or  even 
eight)  white  dots  along  the  front  margin  of  the  prothorax  are  evident  as 
a  rule  even  in  alcoholic  specimens,  and  at  once  distinguish  the  species. 
If  this  character  is  unsatisfactory,  reference  should  be  made  to  the  wing 
venation,  good  figures  of  which  are  given  by  Gillette  in  his  article. 
Specimens  in  alcohol  can  be  conveniently  examined  by  spreading  out 
the  wings,  when  wet,  on  a  glass  slide.  The  species  most  likely  to  be 
confused  with  this  are  Aletra  albostriella^  without  distinct  markings, 
bred  by  us  from  basswood,  and  reported  on  pear  and  cherry;  Typhlocyba 
rosa,  yellowish  without  markings,  found  by  us  common  on  rose,  goose- 
berry, and  apple,  and  reported  by  Gillette  also  on  cherry,  currant,  plum, 
grape,  oak,  and  cottonwood;  Dicraneura  fieberi,  already  described 
above;  Empoasca  obtusa,  bred  by  us  on  apple  and  collected  on  willow, 
having  similar  venation,  but  of  larger  size  and  with  the  head  scarcely 
longer  at  the  middle;  and,  finally,  the  species  next  to  be  treated,  E. 
flavescens  (PL  II.,  Fig.  4),  which  has  been  found  with  malt  on  apple 
and  sugar  beets,  and  in  which  there  are  usually  three  pronotal  spots 
instead  of  six. 

Observations  on  this  or  a  related  species  show  a  rather  rapid  devel- 
opment— from  the  laying  of  the  egg  to  the  imago  within  a  month.  The 
adults  were  noted  as  very  abundant  in  late  April  and  early  May;  common 
and  more  numerous  than  the  nymphs  early  in  June;  on  June  26th, 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  427 

" rising  in  clouds,"  nine  tenths  of  them  nymphs.  None  of  the  images 
are  recorded  in  Illinois  from  November  ist  to  the  last  of  April,  and  it  is 
almost  certain  that  they  pass  the  winter  in  the  egg.  It  can  only  be 
surmised  from  present  data  that  there  are  four  or  more  broods  in  a 
season  in  central  Illinois. 

Empoasca  flavescens  Fabr. 
(PL  II.,  Fig.  4.) 

This  is  closely  related  to  the  preceding  species  and  similar  to  it  in 
habit  and  food  plants,  so  far  as  these  are  known  to  us.  It  was  not 
found  among  the  sugar-beet  leaf-hoppers  until  fall,  but  became  very 
common  in  October,  more  so  indeed  than  mali.  It  is  whiter  than  malt, 
and  has  only  three  spots  on  the  margin  of  the  thorax.  These  are  not 
always  distinct,  and  indefinite  markings  resembling  them  may  be  noted 
in  some  similarly  colored  species  of  related  genera,  which  may  be 
distinguished  by  their  venation,  as  mentioned  above.  The  species  is 
common  and  widespread,  and  is  reported  from  localities  ranging  from 
New  York  and  the  District  of  Columbia  to  California  and  Mexico.  Its 
smoky-winged  variety,  birdii,  is  recorded  from  New  York,  Michigan, 
Illinois,  and  Iowa,  on  apple,  hops,  walnut,  beans,  and  weeds. 

It  has  been  collected  December  i6th,  and  again  among  leaves  in  the 
woods  in  early  spring.  We  have  taken  it  as  early  as  April  2oth.  This 
indicates  hibernation  as  an  imago,  and  considering  its  abundance  in  late 
fall  it  is  evident  that  its  life  history  is  unlike  that  of  mali — perhaps  more 
like  that  of  the  Typhlocybas  next  to  be  treated. 

THE  GRAPE  LEAF-HOPPERS. 

Typhlocyba. 
(PI.  III.,  Fig.  i.) 

Early  in  October,  on  sugar  beets  on  the  University  farm,  the  species 
Typhlocyba  vulnerata  Fitch  was  very  common,  and  a  few  of  T.  comes 
Say  and  its  variety  vitis  Harr.  were  also  seen.  These  and  a  number  of 
other  tiny  leaf-hoppers  finely  marked  in  various  patterns  with  scar- 
let, orange,  ivory-white,  etc.,  on  a  pale  yellowish  white  ground  color, 
are  commonest  and  very  injurious  on  wild  and  cultivated  grape-vines, 
Virginia  creepers  and  redbud,  and  also  occur  on  raspberry  and  a  few 
other  plants.  They  are  widely  distributed  throughout  the  country. 

These  leaf-hoppers  spend  the  winter  as  adults  in  large  numbers 
among  dead  leaves  and  other  trash  upon  the  ground,  coming  out  and 
laying  their  eggs  on  the  vine  leaves  when  warmer  weather  comes  in 
April  and  May.  By  the  middle  of  June  the  adults  become  numerous, 
and  continue  in  increasing  numbers  until  the  leaves  fall  at  the  end  of 
the  season.  All  stages  may  be  found  on  the  vines  at  once,  and  the  suc- 
cession and  number  of  broods  has  never  been  made  out. 


428  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt, 

THE    TREE-HOPPERS. 

Membracidce. 

Acutalis  calva  Say. 

As  might  naturally  be  expected,  the  tree-hoppers  live  mostly  on 
trees.  A  few,  however,  may  occur  on  herbaceous  plants,  such  as  the 
present  species,  which  we  noticed  on  the  sugar  beet^n  the  latter  part  of 
June.  It  is  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long,  triangular  when  seen  from 
above,  blunt  in  front,  acute  behind,  black  above,  the  wings  on  each  side 
yellowish  white.  Its  favorite  food  seems  to  be  the  "Joe  Pye  weed  " 
(Eupatorium  purpureum},  but  we  have  taken  a  few  on  honey-locust  and 
it  is  reported  on  buckwheat  by  Webster.*  Our  speqimens  were  mostly 
taken  in  the  latter  part  of  June.  The  life  history  of  the  species  is  not 
known  to  us.  It  is  found  throughout  the  United  States  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  and  in  Mexico. 


Leaves  variously  spotted  and  blotched  and  sometimes  minutely  specked. 
Suctorial  insects  present  which  are  not  leaf-hoppers. 

PLANT-LICE.^ 
Aphididce. 

Occasionally  where  the  beet  leaf  is  visibly  but  obscurely  injured, 
as  shown  by  a  blotchy  discoloration  of  the  surface  or  by  a  crinkling  and 
curling  of  the  leaf,  small,  sluggish,  inactive  bluish  green  or  blackish 
insects  known  as  plant-lice  (aphides')  may  be  found  clustered  in  patches 
on  the  under  surface  of  the  affected  leaf.  These  leaf-lice  are  oval  or 
somewhat  egg-shaped,  their  bodies  are  soft,  their  legs  and  antennae  are 
well  developed,  and  at  the  back  of  the  abdomen,  near  the  hinder  end  of 
the  body,  a  pair  of  prominent  tubes — the  so-called  honey-tubes — pro- 
jects backwards  or  upwards  like  miniature  stove-pipes.  The  greater 
part  of  them  are  without  wings,  but,  among  these,  winged  individuals 
will  occasionally  occur,  with  large,  delicate,  few-veined  wings.  Ants  of 
various  species  are  likely  to  be  found  with  and  among  them,  and,  indeed, 
wherever  ants  are  abundant  on  or  about  the  beets,  the  presence  of  plant- 
lice  may  always  reasonably  be  suspected.  They  do  their  injury  to  veg- 
etation by  sucking  the  sap  through  a  stiff,  jointed  beak  by  means  of 
which  the  tissues  of  the  plant  are  pierced.  Three  species  have  hitherto 
been  reported  on  the  beet  leaf  in  America,  and  to  these  three  more  are 
added  in  this  paper. 

We  have  not  yet  found  in  Illinois  any  plant-louse  species  infesting 
the  leaf  of  the  sugar  beet  in  sufficient  numbers  to  do  appreciable  injury, 


*Rep.  Comm.  Agr.,  1886,  p.  577. 

tTwo  additional  species  of  plant-lice  infesting  beets,  Aphis  middletonii  and  Pemphigus  betce,  are 
described  on  a  later  page  under  the  head  of  insects  affecting  the  roots  of  this  plant. 


ECONOMiq    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  429 

but  their  rate  of  multiplication  is  enormous,  and  under  especially  favor- 
able circumstances  almost  any  species  may  rapidly  become  so  abundant 
locally  as  practically  to  destroy  its  food  plant  for  the  time  being.  Most 
of  the  species  hatch  from  eggs  in  the  spring,  all  of  this  first  generation 
being  females  capable  of  reproducing  without  copulation,  and  giving 
birth  to  living  young  as  soon  as  they  themselves  become  adult.  Several 
generations  are  ordinarily  brought  forth  in  like  manner  in  a  single 
season,  only  the  last  of  which  is  composed  of  both  males  and  females, 
and  these  produce  the  eggs  by  means  of  which  the  species  is  carried  past 
the  winter. 

These  insects  are  commonly  kept  in  check  by  their  natural  enemies, 
the  ladybugs,  the  lace-wing  flies,  and  a  number  of  rapidly-breeding  par- 
asites. It  is  only  occasionally,  consequently,  that  remedial  measures 
are  likely  to  be  necessary.  In  that  case  tobacco-water,  kerosene  emul- 
sion, or  a  mechanical  mixture  of  water  and  kerosene  should  be  used,  as 
prescribed  for  leaf-hoppers  on  page  412.  The  arsenical  poisons,  Lon- 
don purple,  Paris  green,  and  the  like,  are  inadmissible,  since  they  do 
not  take  effect  on  the  plant-louse,  but  will  kill  many  of  its  insect  enemies. 
They  are  thus  likely  to  increase  the  danger  instead  of  diminishing  it. 

THE  MELON  APHIS. 

Aphis  gossypii  Glover. 

{Aphis  cucumeris  Forbes.) 

This  is  the  common  melon  and  cucumber  aphis  of  the  central 
United  States.  It  abounds  on  a  large  variety  of  plants  throughout  all 
the  United  States  except  the  extreme  northern  part,  and  also  in  Mexico, 
the  West  Indies,  arid  Australia.  It  was  found  in  Nebraska  by  Mr.  T.  A. 
Williams  in  1890  breeding  abundantly  on  beets  in  the  vicinity  of  infested 
cucumber  vines.  An  injury  attributed  to  ants,  reported  from  Nebraska, 
was  perhaps  due  to  this  species.  Its  leading  food  plants  are  melons, 
cucumbers,  and  other  vines  of  the  cucumber  family,  crops  of  which 
it  sometimes  almost  destroys.  It  is  also  abundant  on  cotton,  beans, 
pear-trees,  European  dogwood,  orange-trees,  hothouse  plants,  and  a 
large  number  of  the  commonest  weeds,  including  purslane,  shepherd's- 
purse,  pepper-grass,  pigweed  (Amarantus~),  lamb's-quarters  {Chenopo- 
diuni),  plantain,  dock,  dandelion,  Jamestown  weed  {Datura),  etc.; 
also,  in  lesser  numbers,  on  hops,  spinach,  tomato,  red  clover,  and 
burdock. 

The  eggs  have  been  found  on  purslane,  and  are  at  first  yellowish  or 
greenish,  but  soon  become  jet-black.  The  color  of  the  wingless  lice 
varies  all  the  way  from  yellow  or  green  to  black;  the  antennae,  about 
half  as  long  as  the  body,  are  mostly  pale,  and  the  honey-tubes  are  black. 
The  winged  ones  are  similarly  varied,  but  are  never  entirely  black;  the 


430  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt, 

head,  antennae,  and  honey-tubes  are  black,  together  with  some  bars  on 
the  thoracic  segments  and  some  lateral  abdominal  spots. 

Eggs  and  many  wingless  females  have  been  found  in  midwinter;  in 
May  the  lice  gradually  increase  in  numbers  on  the  plants;  and  in  the 
latter  half  of  June,  according  to  Professor  J.  B.  Smith,  if  sufficiently 
numerous  and  favored  by  fine  weather,  an  extensive  migration  of  winged 
individuals  occurs,  rapidly  enlarging  the  infested  area.  After  the  first 
week  of  July  this  movement  of  dispersal  ceases  under  ordinary  circum- 
stances; but  winged  lice  have  been  seen  as  late  as  August.  The  sexually 
mature  forms  have  not  yet  been  distinguished.  Ants  assist  to  some  ex- 
tent in  transporting  and  distributing  the  lice  in  summer. 

Aphis  atriplicis  Linn. 

Both  in  America  and  Europe  this  is  a  common  species  on  plants  of 
the  order  Chenopodiacetz,  especially  orache  {Atriplex}  in  Europe,  and 
lamb's-quarters  {Chenopodiuiri)  in  America.  It  is  reported  by  Bruner 
as  common  on  beets  in  Nebraska.  The  effect  on  Atriplex  is  peculiar. 
The  leaf-lice  cluster  along  the  midribs,  mostly  on  the  upper  surface, 
causing  a  tubular  longitudinal  rolling  up  of  the  leaves.*  The  species  is 
listed  from  Illinois  and  Missouri.  It  is  closely  related  to  the  preceding, 
and  further  study  may  show  that  the  two  forms  are  not  distinct. 

The  eggs  are  of  the  usual  form  and  color,  and  were  found  with 
sexually  perfect  individuals  in  dry  rolled  leaves  of  Atriplex.  The  sum- 
mer females  vary  from  green  to  black,  but  are  mostly  blackish  spotted 
with  white.  The  sexually  perfect  individuals  are  wingless  and  much 
smaller  than  the  viviparous  form. 

Aphis  sp. 

A  number  of  wingless  females  were  swept  in  July  from  beets  in  a 
field  near  Tremont,  111.,  the  species  of  which  we  have  not  found  de- 
scribed. Not  having  winged  individuals  and  not  being  sure  of  the  host 
plant,  it  seems  best  to  leave  the  species  unnamed.  It  seems  to  belong 
to  the  Nectarophorini  of  CEstlund,  and  is  easily  recognized  by  two  dark 
rings  on  the  antenna,  which  include  the  sutures  between  segments  III, 
IV,  and  V,  and  by  the  dark  color  of  the  apex  of  V  and  the  basal  part 
and  tip  of  VI  (the  so-called  VI  and  VII);  by  the  broad  conical  cauda, 
widest  at  base;  and  by  the  long  honey-tubes  and  antennae,  both  surpass- 
ing the  tip  of  the  body.  The  antennae  are  raised  on  low  tubercles.  The 
setaceous  part  of  VI  is  about  twice  as  long  as  III;  the  honey-tubes  are 
as  long  as  the  anterior  femora. 

Myzus  achyr antes  Monell. 

This  was  originally  described  from  specimens  found  on  Achyrantes, 
a  plant  belonging  to  the  pigweed  family,  and  might  naturally  be  looked 

*Kaltenbach,  Die  Pflanzenfeinde,  p.  508. 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  431 

for  on  beets.  It  is  at  present,  in  fact,  our  commonest  beet  leaf-louse  in 
Illinois.  Though  not  especially  abundant,  it  occurs  in  small  colonies 
on  the  under  side  of  the  leaves  in  the  latter  part  of  June  and  in  July, 
being  most  numerous  about  the  end  of  June.  The  first  winged  individuals 
were  noted  July  5th.  It  is  a  green  aphis,  with  but  little  dark  coloring  in 
the  wingless  female.  The  winged  female  has  the  thorax  and  antennae 
black  and  a  large  dark  patch  on  the  abdomen  between  the  honey-tubes. 
The  species  is  also  recorded  from  Amarantus  (Williams)  and  Malva  ro- 
tundifolia  QEstlund),  and  we  have  collected  it  in  abundance  on  corn. 

Nectarophora  erigeronensis  Thos.? 

Specimens  were  taken  in  sweepings  from  sugar  beets  July  i3th,  i4th, 
and  26th  in  the  vicinity  of  Pekin,  111.,  and  on  the  University  farm  (on  the 
first  date  mostly  wingless)  which  agree  fairly  well  with  the  descriptions  of 
erigeronensis  except  as  to  the  tibiae.  These  are  usually  pale  with  black 
tips,  and  not  entirely  black  as  stated  for  erigeronensis.  The  honey- 
tubes  are  either  entirely  dark  or  with  the  basal  portion  pale.  The  an- 
tennas are  dark  except  at  base,  the  femora  with  the  apical  part,  or  even 
more  than  half  the  length,  black. 

Nectarophora  pisi  Kalt. 

The  "  green  dolphin  "  is  a  rather  common  garden  pest  in  the  United 
States.  Its  body  and  appendages  are  almost  entirely  green.  It  infests 
principally  plants  of  the  pea  family  (^Leguminosaf) ,  especially  the  garden 
pea,  sweet  pea,  and  clover,  but  has  also  been  taken  in  the  pupal  and 
winged  stages  on  beets  in  Nebraska,  and  in  Europe  on  shepherd's-purse, 
nettles,  and  Spircea.  In  Illinois  it  occurs  mostly  about  the  end  of  May. 

THE     FLATAS     OR     LANTERN-FLIES. 

THE  MEALY  FLATA  ( Ormenis pruinosa  Say). 
THE  GREEN  FLATA   {Chlorochroa  conica  Say). 

Although  these  odd  looking  insects,  closely  related  to  the  leaf- 
hoppers,  are  common  and  injurious  in  Illinois  and  elsewhere,  they  have 
not  received  the  attention  from  economic  entomologists  that  they  deserve. 
They  are  "from  a  quarter  to  half  an  inch  long,  with  broad  flat  wings, 
held  vertically  and  meeting  behind  the  body.  As  the  insect  is  broad  in 
front,  the  general  form  when  at  rest,  seen  from  above,  is  that  of  a  wedge. 
The  young  are  covered  with  a  white  woolly  excretion.  Like  some  plant- 
lice  they  collect  in  patches  on  the  under  side  of  leaves  or  on  their  stems, 
and  do  their  injury  by  sucking  out  the  sap.  These  young  are  rather 
short  and  blunt  at  the  ends,  very  broad  across  the  wing-pads,  and  pale 
greenish  beneath  the  woolly  coating.  This  latter  rubs  off  easily,  but 
those  which  have  lost  it  reproduce  it  within  a  few  days. 


43  2 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


\August, 


The  green  Flata  is  clear  yellowish-green  throughout,   about  three- 
eighths  of  an  inch  long,  and  the  wings  about  one-fifth  of  an  inch  broad. 
The  head  is  pointed  in  front  between  the  eyes.     The 
mealy  Flata  is  smaller  than  the  above,  about  one-fourth 
of  an  inch  in  length  and  one-eighth   of  an  inch   across 
Fig  13  The  Green   the  wings-     Its  color  is  at  first  pale  bluish-green,  some- 
FUta,  chiorochroa   times  darkening  to  a  slate-color  or  sooty  brown,  dusted 
over  with  a  whitish   coat.     The  head  is  short  and  cut 
squarely  off  across  the  front  between  the  eyes. 

Both  the  above  species  have  been  found  on  sugar  beets  and  on  a 
variety  of  other  plants,  sometimes  in  number  sufficient  to  do  injury, 
although  in  general  they  are  not  very  common  insects. 
Many  adults  of  both  were  seen  by  us  in  July  on  sugar 
beets  with  beaks  inserted  in  the  leaves.  They  were 
most  abundant  near  a  hedge  of  Osage  orange,  one  of 
their  favorite  food  plants,  on  which  they  had  very  likely 
bred.  The  eggs  of  the  mealy  Flata  are  laid  in  the  bark 
of  twigs  within  a  lengthwise  slit  with  raised  edges,  and 
are  placed  end  to  end  in  a  continuous  row  an  inch  or 
more  in  length.  Those  believed  to  belong  to  the  green 
Flata,  on  the  other  hand,  are  placed  in  a  series  of  short 
slits,  placed  nearly  end  to  end,  within  each  of  which 
is  an  egg  which  has  been  pushed  sidewise  under  the 
bark,  causing  a  noticeable  elevation  of  the  bark  over 
the  eggs. 

The  mealy  Flata  is  recorded  by  various   authors  as 

Flata,   Ormenit  prut-  *  f 

nosa,  eggs: a,  form  and   abundant    and    injurious    on   grape-vines,   apple-trees, 

arrangement;  *,  inser-    gooseberry     rhubarb,    Olivet   (LigUStrum) ,    maple,    hack- 
tion  in  twig;  c,  row  of    e  *': 

eggs  in  twig.  berry,  red  clover,  fleabane,   and  various   other  weeds. 

Miss  Murtfeldt  *  found  it  on  a  large  variety  of  plants,  but  especially  on 
dahlias,  which  were  injured  beyond  recovery.  We  have  bred  it  from 
nymphs  on  apple,  elm,  box-elder,  and  observed  it  in  numbers  on  black- 
berry, sugar  beet,  and  Osage  orange,  on  the  first  of  which  it  was  seen 
actually  to  feed.  Riley  found  the  eggs  in  sassafras  twigs.  The  green 
Flata  probably  has  a  similar  list  of  food  plants.  Miss  Murtfeldt  ob- 
served it  on  Osage  orange  and  lilac.  It  was  found  by  an  assistant  of 
this  office,  Mr.  C.  C.  Adams,  breeding  abundantly  (June  3oth)  on  the 
stalks  of  corn  in  a  corner  of  a  field,  and  was  later  found  in  numbers  on 
ragweed,  catnip,  milkweed,  and  the  Osage  orange  in  the  same  vicinity. 
Probably  these  species  hibernate  in  the  egg,  which,  according  to 
Riley,  hatches  about  the  middle  of  May.  Nymphs  of  the  mealy  Flata 
found  by  him  June  2oth  were  full  grown  July  3d.  Our  largest  rearings  of 
both  species — the  green  Flata  on  corn  and  the  mealy  species  on  box- 

*Bull.  No.  13,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  61. 


1 900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  433 

elder — were  from  colonies  first  observed  June  3oth.  The  latter  began  to 
emerge  July  ist  and  nymphs  were  still  numerous  July  i2th.  The  former 
{conica}  was  a  little  later,  adults  not  appearing  till  July  2ist.  An  exami- 
nation July  27th  of  the  place  where  these  specimens  were  found,  revealed 
a  large  number  of  adults  and  only  a  single  nymph.  Nymphs  of  this 
species  taken  on  various  plants  July  8th  to  i5th  emerged  from  the  iyth 
to  the  ipth.  Our  earliest  date  for  the  imago  is  July  6th.  Adults  of  both 
species  were  seen  by  us  on  sugar  beets  July  i4th;  and  they  were  abundant 
in  the  early  part  of  August  on  their  favorite  food  plants.  We  have  col- 
lected adult  pruinosa  up  to  the  middle  of  September,  and  have  taken 
single  individuals  of  conica  October  3d  and  of  pruinosa  November  i4th. 
This  record  strongly  indicates  that  there  is  but  one  annual  brood, 
nymphs  occurring  from  about  the  middle  of  May  to  late  in  July,  and 
images  from  July  to  the  end  of  the  season. 

These  insects  are  especially  sensitive  to  the  effects  of  rainy  weather, 
as  was  strikingly  shown  by  colonies  of  C.  conica  on  corn.  After  a  heavy 
rain  very  few  could  be  found  on  stalks  where  they  had  been  common 
before,  while  on  plants  which  afforded  them  better  shelter  their  numbers 
were  not  so  much  diminished. 


THE   PIGWEED   BUG. 

Piesma  cinerea  Say. 

This  small,  gray,  rough  and  much-flattened,  somewhat  diamond- 
shaped  bug,  well  shown  in  Fig.  15,  was  very  abundant  on  pigweed  (Ama- 
rantus}  in  sugar-beet  fields  in  central  Illinois  July  i3th,  yet  scarcely  one 
was  seen  on  the  beet  itself.  Experience  has  shown, 
however,  that  it  will  attack  the  beet  energetically  if 
its  favorite  food  plant  becomes  scarce.  In  Iowa, 
and  especially  in  Nebraska,  it  has  been  noticed  by 
Osborn  and  Bruner  respectively  as  very  common  on 
beets,  sometimes  doing  much  harm.  It  lives  also  on 
smartweeds,  grasses,  and  a  variety  of  trees, — among 
which  the  buckeye  may  be  especially  mentioned, — 
and  occasionally  injures  the  blossom  of  the  grape  in 
spring.  The  effect  of  its  work  upon  the  plant  is 

Fig.   15.      The   Pigweed  .,  i_     ji         •     f       L     j          •  j  i 

Bug,  Piesma  cinerea.  (Os-  veiT  evident  on  badly  infested  pigweeds,  where 
bom,  u.  s.  Dept.  of  Agn-  whitish  dots  thickly  mottle  the  surface,  the  plants 
evidently  suffering  from  loss  of  effective  leafage.  Its 
life  history  is  not  peculiar.  Adults  are  very  abundant  from  late  May  to 
early  July  in  central  Illinois,  and  again  from  October  onward.  They 
winter  under  any  convenient  shelter,  but  are  abundant  under  the  loose 
bark  of  trees,  a  situation  to  which  they  are  especially  adapted  by  their 
flattened  form.  Their  occasional  abundance  is  illustrated  by  the  fact 


434  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  {August, 

that  an  immense  swarm  of  this  species  was  noticed  at  Normal,  Illinois, 
October  3d,  the  insects  flying  in  great  numbers  high  in  the  air  from  three 
to  five  in  the  afternoon. 

Clean  culture  and  the  burning  of  trash — the  first  to  reduce  the  food 
and  the  second  to  destroy  the  winter  quarters — will  check  the  multipli- 
cation of  this  species  as  well  as  that  of  a  great  number  of  similar  insects. 

THE    COMMON  FLOWER  BUG. 

Triphleps  insidiosus  Say. 

This  is  an  insect  of  so  uncertain  habit  and  varied  food  that  its  in- 
sertion in  a  list  of  species  injurious  to  the  beet  is  of  doubtful  propriety. 
The  fairly  common  occurrence  on  the  beet  plant 
throughout  the  season  of  both  old  and  young 
render  it,  however,  an  object  of  suspicion  and 
worthy  of  brief  treatment  here.  It  is  a  minute 
flattened  bug,  black,  with  yellowish  wing  tips, 
everywhere  distributed,  and  on  a  great  variety 
of  plants.  It  has  been  charged  with  serious  in- 
jury to  chrysanthemum  shoots,  causing  them  to 
curl  and  stopping  their  growth,  and  Osborn  re- 
ports it  as  actually  puncturing  clover  blossoms. 

Fig.  16.     The  Common  Flower     *• 

Bug,  Triphups insidiosus.  (Os-  with  its  beak;*  but  most  of  the  evidence  con- 
bom,  u.s.Depu  of  Agriculture.)  cerning  its  food  habits  indicates  insectivorous 

propensities.  It  has  been  seen  devouring  young  chinch-bugs,  the  Phyl- 
loxera of  the  grape,  young  Thripida,  and  the  eggs  of  the  cotton  boll- 
worm.  We  have  observed  it  also  feeding  on  the  minute  soft  larvae  of 
the  clover  midge,  and  in  confinement  individuals  of  this  species  will 
attack  each  other.  The  available  data  do  not  determine  its  stage  of 
hibernation.  We  have  not  found  it  as  an  adult  earlier  than  April  3oth 
nor  later  than  October  26th.  Most  of  our  specimens  were  taken  in  May 
and  during  the  late  summer  and  fall.  Young  have  been  seen  by  us  on 
beets  as  late  as  September,  and  adults  occur  on  this  plant  throughout 
the  season,  mostly  out  of  sight  between  the  bases  of  the  leaves. 

THE   LEAF- BUGS. 

Capsidce. 

Among  the  suctorial  insects  which  sometimes  do  a  rather  indefinite 
but  serious  injury  to  beets  by  sucking  out  the  sap  from  leaf  and  leaf- 
stalk, the  large  and  varied  group  known  as  the  leaf-bugs,  or  Capsid<zt 
may  usually  be  recognized  by  their  flat  backs,  their  comparatively  soft 
bodies,  their  active  movements  and  ready  flight,  and  the  yellowish 

*Insect  Li(p,  Vol.  I.,  p.  122. 


1 900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  435 

green  or  red  frequent  in  their  coloration.  From  the  next  group,  the 
Lygczida,  representatives  of  which  are  also  found  in  the  beet  field,  they 
may  be  distinguished  on  close  examination  by  the  character  of  the  veins 
in  the  membranous  part  of  the  fore  wing.  In  this  membrane  in  the 
Capsidtz  the  only  veins  are  at  the  outer  (anterior)  edge  of  the  wing, 
where  they  inclose  two  small  areas  or  so-called  cells,  while  in  the  wing 
membrane  of  the  Lygceida  there  are  four  or  five  unbranched  veins,  some 
of  which  start  from  a  single  cell  at  the  base. 

Most  of  the  plant-bugs  whose  life  history  is  known,  winter  as  adults 
under  fallen  leaves  and  similar  rubbish,  emerging  in  early  spring  to  lay 
their  eggs,  and  perishing  soon  after  this  function  is  performed.  Their 
injuries  increase  with  the  growth  of  the  young  and  with  the  appearance, 
in  some  cases,  of  later  broods. 

The  observer  of  beet  insects  may  learn  to  distinguish  the  more 
abundant  species  of  leaf  plant-bugs  of  the  beet  field  by  attending  to  a 
few  conspicuous  differences.  The  false  flea-hopper  {Agalliastes  associ- 
atus — PL  III.,  Fig.  3)  is  about  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  in  length  and  of 
a  uniform  dull  blackish  color,  only  the  semi-translucent  membranous 
tips  of  the  wings  lightening  to  a  sooty  brown.  It  hops  actively  when 
disturbed,  like  a  common  flea.  The  garden  flea-hopper  {Halticus  uhleri 
—Fig.  17),  also  about  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  in  length,  is  shining  black 
and  jumps  readily  like  the  preceding.  It  is  in  two  forms;  one  with 
long  wings,  with  an  obscure  white  point  at  the  tip  of  the  thickened  part 
of  the  wing,  and  the  other  with  short  black  wings  not  marked  with 
white.  Plagiognathus  obscurus  is  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long,  dull 
blackish,  with  bicolored  legs — the  thighs  dark  and  the  tibiae  pale — and 
a  narrow  pale  bar  across  each  wing  near  its  tip.  Garganus  fusiformis 
is  nearly  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  length,  bordered  with  yellowish  red, 
with  a  white  streak  down  the  middle.  The  neck  is  white,  the  legs  are 
red,  and  the  middle  joint  of  the  antennae  is  greatly  swollen  and  black. 
Eccritotarsiis  elegans  is  about  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  long,  varying  from 
dusky  to  velvety  black  and  gaily  marked  with  white.  One  of  the  com- 
moner species  on  sugar  beets  is  the  tarnished  plant-bug  (Lygus  pratensis 
—Fig.  18).  It  is  about  a  fifth  of  an  inch  long,  of  a  variable  brassy 
brown,  with  black  marks  on  the  thorax  above.  The  young  (Fig.  19) 
have  two  or  three  pairs  of  round  black  dots  on  the  back.  This  plant- 
bug  is  abundant  everywhere  throughout  the  year,  especially  on  low- 
growing  vegetation,  excepting  grass.  Calocoris  rapidus  (Fig.  20)  is 
longer  and  narrower  than  the  foregoing,  with  parallel  sides,  uniform 
dark  brown  above,  very  narrowly  edged  with  yellow.  It  is  further 
marked  by  a  carmine  shade  across  the  tip  of  the  leathery  part  of  the 
wing.  The  young  (Fig.  21)  are  more  or  less  colored  with  bright  red  on 
the  antennae,  the  legs,  the  front  part  of  the  body,  and  the  abdomen. 
The  green  leaf-bug  {Macrofokvs  chlorionis — PI.  IV.,  Fig.  i)  is  under  a 


436  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AugtiSt, 

fifth  of  an  inch  in  length,  nearly  uniform  grass-green,  the  thorax  only 
being  dark  green,  the  legs  and  antennae  yellowish,  and  the  wing  mem- 
branes slightly  dusky  with  changeable  tints  of  purple  and  green. 

THE  FALSE  FLEA-HOPPER. 
Agalliastes  associatus  Uhler. 

(PI.  III.,  Fig.  3.) 

This  minute,  active,  black  hopper  is  common  in  the  beet  field,  but 
much  less  so  than  the  following  species,  with  which,  indeed,  it  is  likely 
to  be  confused  unless  closely  examined.  It  is  narrower  and  a  little 
longer  than  the  other,  and  may  be  further  distinguished  by  the  absence 
of  the  dull  white  point  on  the  wing.  The  adults  of  this  insect  were 
commonest  in  our  beet  fields  in  July,  the  earliest  fully  developed  speci- 
mens being  noticed  June  25th.  From  July  onward  the  number  gradu- 
ally diminished  until  October  3d,  when  the  last  of  the  species  were  seen. 
In  Colorado  full  grown  specimens  have  been  taken  from  May  i4th  to 
August  24th,  mostly  in  late  July  and  early  August.  It  occurs  through- 
out Illinois  and  is  reported  from  New  York,  Colorado,  and  Utah.* 

THE  GARDEN   FLEA-HOPPER. 
Halticus  uhleri  Giard. 

This  important  injurious  insect  has  been  treated  at  some  length  by 
Chittenden,f  and  we  have  but  little  to  add  to  his  account  except  to 
record  it  as  a  common  beet  insect  in  Illinois  in  company  with  the  "false 
flea-hopper"  above  mentioned.  It  has  occurred  especially  in  our  col- 
lections on  clover,  pigweed  (Amarantus*),  and  beets.  It  is  injurious, 
according  to  Chittenden,  to  beans,  peas,  egg-plants,  chrysanthemums, 
and  a  large  number  of  common  weeds.  The  visible  result  of  its  work 
is  a  deadening  and  whitening  of  the  leaf  where  the  beak  is  inserted  to 
pump  out  the  sap,  the  leaf  becoming  finely  mottled  with  white  whenever 
the  injury  is  considerable. 

It  is  a  tiny  insect,  about  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  long,  shining  black 
sprinkled  with  minute  tufts  of  short  yellow  hair  which  may  be  easily 
rubbed  off.  The  cuneus  of  the  wing  is  minutely  tipped  with  dull  white 
in  the  long-winged  form.  In  the  short-winged  form  the  wings  are  uni- 
form black  and  destitute  of  the  membrane,  and  do  not  cover  the  tip 
of  the  body.  The  species  can  be  most  readily  distinguished  from 
Agalliastes  associatus  by  the  shorter,  broader  body,  which  has  an  oval 
outline,  that  of  the  other  species  being  relatively  slender,  with  parallel 
sides.  The  adults  appear  rather  early  as  a  rule,  occurring  in  the  beet 


*Popenoe  has  reported  what  is  probably  this  species  as  associated  with  the  garden  flea-hopper  in 
Kansas.  He  reports  his  specimens,  on  Uhler's  authority,  a  sAgalliastes  bractatus  Say;  but  as  Say's 
Capsus  bractatus  is  a  Halticus  close  to  uhleri.  this  is  probably  a  slip  of  the  pen. 

tBull.  No.  19,  N.  S.,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  58. 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


437 


field  about  the  middle  of  May,  becoming  abundant  in  July,  and  contin- 
uing until  October.     Chittenden  suggests  that  there  may  be  two  broods 


Fig.  17.  The  Garden  Flea-hopper,  Halticus  ithleri;  a,  short-winged  female;  b,  long-winged 
emale;  c,  male;  d,  head,  side  view,  showing  beak.  (Chittenden,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 

in  a  season,  the  species  passing  the  winter  in  the  egg.  We  have  never 
obtained  it  in  our  numerous  winter  collections,  and  this  surmise  is 
probably  correct. 

THE  DUSKY  LEAF-BUG. 
Plagiognathus  obscurus  Uhler. 

Although  this  is  a  fairly  common  Illinois  species,  it  has  not  often 
been  found  by  us  on  beets.  It  is  a  small,  funereal,  faded-black  insect, 
shaped  like  the  very  abundant  tarnished  plant-bug  but  of  much  smaller 
size.  It  is  generally  distributed  over  the  United  States  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  and  is  recorded  from  a  considerable  variety  of  plants. 
Its  time  distribution  in  our  collections  indicates  the  development  of  two 
separate  broods  and  hibernation  in  the  egg.  Over  fifty  lots  have  been 
collected  by  us,  and  all  occurred  either  between  June  i4th  and  July  aoth 
or  between  August  i4th  and  October  8th,  with  the  exception  of  a  single 
collection  made  November  ist. 


438  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

THE  GREEN  LEAF-BUG. 

Macrocoleus  chlorionis  Say*. 

(PI.  IV.,  Fig.  i.) 

Except  the  tarnished  plant-bug,  this  little  grass-green  insect  is  the 
commonest  leaf-bug  on  the  sugar  beet  in  Illinois.  Young  were  taken 
on  beets  in  the  latter  part  of  June,  and  in  July  it  was  mostly  adult.  It 
was  at  this  time  very  common  in  beet  fields,  flying  up  from  the  larger 
plants  whenever  these  were  disturbed.  Later  it  became  less  abundant, 
and  by  September  ist  had  almost  disappeared,  although  occasional 
specimens  were  taken  on  beets  as  late  as  October  icth.  A  common 
whitish  mottling  of  the  leaves  was  attributed  by  us  to  the  abundance  of 
this  leaf-bug.  It  seems  to  have  a  special  liking  for  the  beet,  as  we  have 
not  found  it  common  on  other  plants  although  we  have  taken  it  in  small 
numbers  at  many  localities  in  central  and  southern  Illinois.  It  is  nearly 
a  uniform  green,  the  thorax  only  a  little  darker,  the  legs  and  antennae 
yellowish,  and  the  eyes  and  the  tips  of  the  antennae  blackish.  The  wing 
membranes  are  dusky  and  the  upper  surface  of  the  body  is  sparsely 
covered  with  short  black  hairs.  It  is  to  some  extent  nocturnal,  and  it 
has  been  taken  by  us  at  electric  lights. 

Garganus  fusiformis  Say. 

Very  little  is  known  of  the  habits  of  this  handsome  and  not  very 
common  leaf-bug.  It  was  taken  by  us  on  sugar  beets  in  September, 
and  the  adult  has  occurred  elsewhere  in  our  collections  from  June  loth 
to  October  8th.  It  is  widely  distributed  over  the  eastern  United  States. 

Eccritotarsus  elegans  Uhler. 

This  beautiful  little  capsid  is  comparatively  rare,  but  as  two-thirds 
of  the  specimens  in  our  collections  were  taken  on  sugar  beets  it  is 
deserving  of  mention  here.  It  is  reported  from  Illinois,  California, 
Texas,  and  Kansas. 

THE  TARNISHED  PLANT-BUG. 

Lygus  pratensis  Linn. 

Chief  among  the  leaf-bugs  is  this  very  abundant  and  widely  distributed 
insect.  It  is  nearly  a  quarter  of  an  inch  long,  brassy  brown,  minutely  and 
variably  streaked  and  spotted  with  yellow,  often  with  black  marks  on  the 
thorax  which  are  darkest  and  thickest  in  front.  The  young  are  greenish, 
of  course  without  wings,  the  older  of  them  with  two  pairs  of  round 

*Mr.  Ashmead  has  informed  us  that  specimens  sent  him  by  us  represent  a  new  species  of  the  genus 
Macrocoleus;  but  among  Say's  unrecognized  descriptions  of  Capsidce  is  one  of  Capsus  chlorionis 
(Leconte  edition,  I.,  p.  346)  which  sufficiently  characterizes  our  specimens  to  warrant  the  adoption  of  his 
name  for  the  species.  The  coloration  of  our  specimens  and  the  relative  lengths  of  the  antennal  joints  are 
exactly  as  described  by  him. 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


439 


Fig.  18.    The  Tarnished  Plant-bug,  Lyguspra- 
tcnsis,  adult. 


black  dots  on  the  back  of  the 
thorax  and  one  dot  on  the  abdo- 
men. It  swarms  on  nearly  all 
kinds  of  cultivated  plants,  flying 
up  readily  when  disturbed.  It  is 
very  common  in  beet  fields,  where 
every  observing  fruit-grower  must 
have  noticed  it,  and  frequently 
occurs  at  electric  lights.  These 
insects  have  been  accused  of 
manifold  injury  to  a  variety  of 
fruits  and  plants,  but  notwith- 
standing their  abundance  in  beet 
fields  no  well-marked  injury  to 
beets  has  been  traced  to  their 
presence.  It  is  not  impossible, 
however,  that  the  mere  drain  of 
their  appropriation  of  the  sap  of 

the  plant  may  be  burdensome  to  it  while  it  is  laying  up  its  enormous" 

store  of  nutrition  in  the  root. 

This  species  is  found  during  the  winter  in  sheltered  situations,  under 

boards,  beneath  the  basal  leaf  tuft  of  the  mullein,  dead  grass,  beds  of 

leaves,   and    the  like.     At 

this  season  most  of  these 

leaf-bugs  are  adult,  but  a 

few  young  may  sometimes 

be    found    among    them. 

They  emerge  with  the  first 

warm  days  of   spring   and 

lay   their   eggs  about   the 

plants  on  whose  sap  they 

are  feeding.    The  young  of 

theyear  appear  late  in  April 

or  early  in  May,  and  the 

earliest  mature  in  the  latter 

month,  at  which  time  all 

ages  are  to   be  found  to- 
gether.      The    successive 

broods   have   not    as    yet 

been  distinguished.       They  continue   active    and    abundant   until   the 

approach  of  frost,  when  their  breeding  ceases  and  the  remaining  young 

mature  for  hibernation. 

The  burning  of  vegetable  trash,   especially  in  cold  weather,  when 

insects  are  sluggish,  will  destroy  many  of  this  species,  and  a  spray  of 


Fig.  19.     The  Tainished  Plant-bug,  Lygus pratensis,  nymph. 


440 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


some  suitable  kerosene  mixture  will  be  found   an  effective  means   of 
attack  if  this  should  become  necessary  on  the  beet. 

THE  DUSKY  LEAF-BUG. 
Calocoris  rapidus  Say. 

This  insect  is  similar  in  form  and  size  to  the  preceding,  being,  how- 
ever, longer  and  a  little  narrower.  It  is  blackish  brown  with  a  very 
narrow  yellow  border  at  each  side,  the  prothorax  yellow  and  red  with  a 
central  black  cross-bar,  often  divided.  The  antennae  are  conspicuously 
barred  with  black,  yellow,  and  red.  The  young  are  pale  green,  with 


Fig.  21.     The  Dusky  Leaf-bug,  Calocoris 
rapidus,  nymph. 


Fig.  20.     The  Dusky  Leaf-bug,  Calocoris  rapi- 
dus, adult. 

much  of  the  head,  most  of  the  prothorax,  the  thighs,  and  the  middle 
of  the  abdomen  red.     Their  antennae  are  red  ringed  with  white. 

This  is  a  common  species,  less  abundant  than  the  tarnished  plant- 
bug,  but  extremely  like  it  in  its  economic  relations.  It  continues 
throughout  the  season  until  October. 

Hadronema  militaris  Uhl. 

An  inhabitant  of  the  country  west  of  the  Mississippi,  reported  by 
Bruner  as  very  common  on  beets  in  some  localities  in  Nebraska  in  the 


IpOO.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF   THE    SUGAR    BEET.  441 

latter  part  of  July.  The  adult  has  been  taken  in  Colorado  from  June  to 
September.  It  infests  pigweeds  (Amarantus^),  and  hence  probably  its 
liking  for  beets. 

THE   SMALLER   PLANT-BUGS, 

Lygceidce. 

The  species  of  this  large  and  important  family  have  a  hard  and 
brittle  cuticle,  with  colors  usually  varying  from  grayish  to  black  and 
seldom  marked  with  red,  green,  or  yellow.  The  membranous  tip  of  the 
anterior  wings  has  four  or  five  unbranched  veins,  some  of  which  usually 
start  from  a  single  closed  cell  at  the  base.  Although  tfiis  family  con- 
tains some  of  the  most  destructive  agricultural  species, — the  notorious 
chinch-bug  among  them, — its  injuries  to  the  beet  have  hitherto  been 
insignificant,  at  least  in  Illinois.  The  frequency  with  which  adults  of 
this  family  have  been  taken  in  the  winter  warrants  the  assumption  that 
they  hibernate  as  a  rule  in  the  imago  stage.  The  young  are  produced 
in  spring,  and  the  adults  become  relatively  more  abundant  with  the 
progress  of  the  season,  although  no  general  statement  can  be  made  con- 
cerning the  number  of  broods  annually. 

Six  species  of  this  family  are  on  our  list  of  beet  insects,  and  doubt- 
less others  will  be  added  after  further  studies  in  the  field.  Owing  to 
their  generally  similar  pepper-and-salt  coloration  they  are  distinguished 
to  an  ordinary  observation  with  considerable  difficulty — a  fact  of  no 
practical  importance,  since  whatever  the  species  the  injuries  are  essen- 
tially the  same.  Some  of  the  most  noticeable  differences  of  those  hith- 
erto observed  on  the  beet  may,  however,  be  indicated  for  the  benefit  of 
the  student  of  the  insect  enemies  of  this  crop. 

Our  beat-leaf  species  belong  to  four  genera.  They  are  of  similar 
size,  ranging  from  one-eighth  to  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch  in  length. 
Emblethis  and  Sphragisticus  (Fig.  22,  23)  have  an  even,  long-oval  form, 
the  outlines  of  the  thorax  flowing  without  break  into  those  of  the  abdo- 
men, both  laterally  and  dorsally.  The  second  of  these  two  genera  is 
pale  gray  and  black  with  the  gray  more  or  less  sprinkled  with  black  dots. 
Geocoris  and  Nysius  (Fig.  24,  25)  are  colored  like  the  above,  but  the 
thorax  and  abdomen  are  more  distinct,  with  a  break  in  the  outline  at 
their  juncture.  Geocoris  (Fig.  24)  is  easily  distinguished  by  its  very 
large  head  and  eyes,  together  equal  in  breadth  to  any  other  part  of  the 
body.  Emblethis  griseus  (Fig.  22)  is  dull  grayish  brown  with  black 
points  or  dots  and  yellowish  legs.  Sphragisticus  ncbulosus  (Fig.  23)  has 
the  head  and  front  part  of  the  prothorax  dull  black,  the  hinder  part  of 
the  prothorax  and  the  leathery  part  of  the  wings  gray  sprinkled  with 
black  points,  and  the  wings  also  with  some  black  spots.  The  membranes 
of  the  wings  are  whitish.  Geocoris  bullatus  (Fig.  24)  is  gray  with  some 


442 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


{August, 


black  spots,  the  thorax  and  wings  with  black  points,  and  the  antennae 
black.  Nysius  angustatus  (Fig.  25)  is  gray  with  black  dots  and  points 
and  some  dark  marks  along  the  line  of  union  between  the  leathery  part 
and  the  membranous  part  of  the  wings. 


Emblethis  griseus  Wolff. 
(£.  arenarius  Fieber. ) 

This  species  occurs,  according n  to 
Bruner,  in  Nebraska  on  the  white  pig- 
weed and  on  beets  and  has  been  found 
about  the  roots-  of  stink-weed  (Eragros- 
tis  major'}.  It  is  found  in  Illinois  and 
several  other  American  states  from  Ne- 
vada to  Massachusetts,  and  occurs  also 
in  Europe.  It  is  recorded  from  Colo- 
rado at  various  dates  from  February 
to  August  6th. 


Fig.    22. 
(Bruner.) 


Emblethis  griseus,    adult. 


Sphragisticus  nebulosus  Fall.  . 
(Trapezonotus  nebulosus  Fall.) 

This  insect  has  been  found,  according  to  Bruner,  on  beets  and 
quite  commonly  also  on  other  plants  of  the  beet  family,  but  is  espe- 
cially abundant  on  the  white  pigweed.  It  is 
abundant  in  Illinois  and  is  extensively  distrib- 
uted over  the  United  States,  British  America, 
and  Europe.  Bruner  has  recorded  (U.  S.  Bull. 
22,  p.  95)  an  unusual  outbreak  of  this  species  in 
company  with  the  large-eyed  plant-bug  (Gee- 
coris  bullatus}  and  the  false  chinch-bug  (Nysius 
angustatus}  in  the  neighborhood  of  Lincoln, 
Nebraska,  on  land  which  had  been  allowed  to 
grow  weeds  during  the  latter  part  of  the  season 
preceding.  The  following  spring  was  dry,  and 
swarms  of  these  insects  injured  seriously  what 
Fig.  23.  Sphragisticus  nebu-  foliage  appeared,  especially  that  of  grape-vines 

losus,  adult.     (Bruner.) 

and    various    cultivated    trees.       Gillette    and 

Baker  in  their  "  Hemiptera  of  Colorado"*  give  dates  for  the  adult  in 
that  state  ranging  from  February  pth  to  September  2d.  We  have  found 
it  in  December  in  Illinois. 


*Bull.  31  (Tech.  Ser.  No.  i).  Col.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  p.  25. 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


443 


THE  LARGE-EYED  PURSLANE  BUG. 
Geocoris  bulletins  Say. 

This  species  ranges  from  Canada  to  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  It  is  common  in  Illinois  on  sugar 
beets,  but  is  especially  abundant  west  of  the  Mis- 
souri River,  where  it  seems  to  be  one  of  the  com- 
monest insects  of  the  sugar  beet.  It  apparently 
prefers  purslane,  but  it  is  common  on  the  pigweeds 
{Amarantus  and  Cktnopodium)  and  on  smart- 
weed  and  other  weeds  as  well.  Its  injuries  to 
grapes  and  small  trees  have  been  mentioned  in 
the  preceding  paragraph.  It  is  sometimes  called 
^  the  ground-bug  because  of  its  habit  of  collecting 
under  low-spreading  plants  and  running  over  the 

Fig.    24.       The    Large-eyed 

Purslane  Bug.  Geocoris bullatus,     SUrfaCC  of  the  ground.          • 
adult. 

Geocoris  pattens  Stal. 

This  western  species,  closely  related  to  G.  bullatus,  is  reported  by 
Gillette  and  Baker*  to  have  been  taken  on  sugar  beets  in  Colorado.  Their 
collections  of  the  imago  were  made  between  May  7th  and  August  24th. 

Nysius  minutus  Uhl. 

This  insect  is  said  in  Gillette  and  Baker's  "  Hemiptera  of  Colo- 
rado" to  be  common  from  that  state  to  the  Dakotas,  and  to  occur  also 
in  California  and  Texas  and  in  some  of  the  Atlantic  states.  It  was  taken 
from  June  4th  to  October  i5th  on  sugar  beets,  Bigelovia,  and  mustard, 
being  especially  injurious  to  the  last-mentioned  plant. 

THE  FALSE   CHINCH-BUG. 

Nysius  angustatus  Uhl. 

This  destructive  species  is  widely  distributed,  attacks  freely  many 
cultivated  crops  as  well  as  weeds,  and  not  infrequently  makes  a  destruc- 
tive attack  on  plants  of 
economic  value.  It  com- 
monly does  its  most  serious 
injury  in  spring,  especially 
in  dry  weather,  the  hungry 
adults  swarming  on  the 
young  foliage  after  their  "or 

fast  of  hibernation  and  de- 
Fig.    25.     The   False   Chinch-bug,   Nysius  angustatus: 

Stroying  it  before  it  is  fairly       a,  appearance  of  injured  leaf;  b,  nymph;  c,  adult. 

unfolded.     The  late  generations  produce  a  less  serious  effect  upon  the 
more  abundant  leafage  of  the  summer  and  fall. 

*Bull.  31  (Tech.  Ser.  No.  i)   Col.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  p.  25. 


444  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

It  was  especially  injurious  to  corn  near  New  Holland,  Illinois,  late 
in  May,  1898.  It  often  collects  on  beets  and  other  garden  plants,  and 
injures  strawberries,  apple  grafts,  potatoes,  turnips,  radishes,  cabbages, 
lettuce,  and  mustard.  It  is  said  to  prefer  plants  of  the  cruciferous 
family,  but  purslane  is  a  favorite  with  it.  It  is  often  mistaken  for  the 
chinch-bug.  It  is  commonly  reported  to  winter  as  an  adult,  and  we 
have  taken  it  under  the  spreading  leaves  of  dock  in  December  and  by 
sweeping  as  early  as  April  nth.  On  the  other  hand,  both  Webster  and 
Osborn  have  reported  the  pairing  of  adults  in  November,  and  Mr.  Web- 
ster believes  that  he  found  its  eggs  at  this  season  under  Euphorbia, 
where  it  had  taken  shelter.  From  this  he  supposes  that  it  probably 
hibernates  in  the  egg,  the  young  hatching  in  the  spring.  Osborn  has 
found  the  eggs  among  the  blossoms  of  pigweed  (Amarantus  retroflexus), 
We  have  bred  the  imago  by  May  i6th  from  young  collected  May  nth. 
The  number  of  generations  annually  is  not  certainly  known,  but  there  are 
apparently  at  least  two,  and  very  likely  three. 

If  insecticides  become  necessary  for  these  insects  diluted  kerosene 
emulsion  may  be  used.  The  usual  precautions  of  clean  culture  and 
the  destruction  of  rubbish  during  the  fall  and  winter  should  of  course 
be  taken. 

THE   SQUASH-BUG  FAMILY. 
Coreidce. 

Two  species  of  this  widespread  and  abundant  family  may  receive 
mere  mention  here  because  of  the  possibility  rather  than  the  certainty 
of  their  being  injurious  to  the  beet.  Corizus  lateralis,  a  yellowish  in- 
sect about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  long,  with  small  spots  on  the  wings  and 
head,  and  resembling  in  shape  the  Common  squash-bug,  is  not  even 
known  certainly  to  feed  upon  plants.  It  is  fairly  common  in  beet  fields 
late  in  the  season,  and  the  nature  of  the  reports  of  its  occurrence  on 
other  vegetation  makes  it  likely  that  it  is  of  vegetarian  habit.  Acan- 
thocerus  galeator  is  mentioned  here  because  of  Bruner's  statement  that 
he  has  found  it  several  times  on  beets  in  Nebraska.  This  is  also  shaped 
like  a  common  squash-bug,  but  is  much  larger,  with  greatly  swollen 
thighs  and  slender  tibiae.  The  back  is  brownish  gray,  and  the  wing 
membrane  nearly  black.  It  is  widely  distributed  and  occurs  on  various 
kinds  of  vegetation,  and  has  been  reported  as  destructive  to  the  orange 
in  Florida. 

Corizus   lateralis    Say. 

Too  little  is  known  of  the  habits  of  this  common  insect  to  permit 
it  to  be  included  positively  among  injurious  species,  but  as  it  occurs  not 
infrequently  in  beet  fields  late  in  the  season  together  with  other  species 
of  its  genus,  it  may  be  mentioned  here  at  least  as  a  hint  to  the  student. 
Gillette  and  Baker  list  several  species  of  the  genus  found  in  Colorado 


.  ]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF   THE    SUGAR    BEET.  445 

on  barley,  alfalfa,  and  various  weeds.  Webster  reports  later alis  as  com- 
mon on  buckwheat,  and  Uhler  found  it  on  rank  vegetation  at  the  bor- 
ders of  woods.  It  inhabits  the  United  States  east  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, hibernates  in  the  adult  stage,  and,  according  to  Uhler,  is  two- 
brooded,  the  first  generation  of  adults  appearing  from  late  May  to  early 
July,  and  the  second  from  August  to  October,  inclusive. 

Acanthocerus  gdleator  Fabr. 
{Euthoctha  galeator  Fabr. ) 

Little  has  been  published  of  the  biological  relations  of  this  insect, 
common  in  Illinois.  It  is  mentioned  here  on  the  authority  of  Bruner, 
who  reports  that  he  found  it  several  times  on  beets  as  well  as  on  the  wild 
cucumber.  It  has  much  the  form  and  colors  of  the  common  squash- 
bug  (Anasa  tristis},  but  is  readily  distinguished  by  its  greatly  swollen 
thighs  and  slender  tibiae.  Its  back  is  brownish  gray,  and  the  wing 
membrane  is  nearly  black.  It  is  found  throughout  the  United  States 
east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  eggs,  which  are  attached  by  one 
side  in  irregular  clusters  to  leaves  and  stems  of  plants,  are  of  a  ruddy, 
golden  color,  and  of  an  oval  shape,  subtriangular  in  cross-section.  The 
young  are  purple-black,  very  spinose,  with  orange  heads  and  crimson 
abdomens.  We  have  found  this  insect  on  blackberries  and  raspberries 
and  on  forest  undergrowth.  It  has  been  reported  by  Hubbard  as  very 
destructive  in  Florida.  It  seems  to  hibernate  as  an  adult.  It  has  been 
taken  by  us  under  bark  and  leaves  November  2d,  and  again  April  aoth. 
There  is  probably  but  one  generation  in  a  year.  The  greater  part  of 
our  specimens  were  taken  in  June  and  July,  and  again  in  fall. 

THE  STINK- BUG  FAMILY  (Pentatomidaf). 

THE  WESTERN  GREEN  STINK-BUG. 
Pentatoma  uhleri  Stal  {Lioderma  uhlert  Stal). 

Members  of  the  family  represented  by  this  species  are  well  known 
to  every  one  by  their  broad  and  flattened  form  and  by  their  habit  of 
visiting  blackberries,  strawberries,  and  the  like,  upon  which  they  leave 
a  distasteful  excretion  familiar  to  all  who  have  eaten  those  fruits  when 
freshly  picked.  The  present  species  belongs  in  the  West,  from  South 
Dakota  to  California  and  New  Mexico.  It  has  occasionally  become 
extraordinarily  abundant  and  destructive,  attacking  cultivated  crops 
almost  without  discrimination.  Corn,  wheat,  oats,  beets,  cabbage,  and 
a  great  variety  of  garden  produce  were  destroyed  by  it  in  South  Dakota 
in  1897,*  although  it  seemed  to  prefer  turnips,  radishes,  potato  blos- 
soms, and  young  sweet-corn.  In  Texas  it  has  destroyed  entire  plantings 

*Bull.  57,  Agr.  Exper.  Station  S.  Dak.,  p.  36. 


446 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


r** 


3  x  a.o 


Fig.  26.  The  Western  Green  Stink-bug,  Pentatoma  uhlcri:  i,  egg  (enlarged  8  times);  2,  surface 
of  egg,  greatly  magnified  (300  times);  3,  nymph  one  week  old,  dorsal  view;  4,  same,  ventral  view;  5,  beak 
of  two-weeks  old  nymph;  6,  nymph  two  weeks  old;  7,  nymph  ten  weeks  old;  8,  beak  of  adult;  9  and  10, 
adult,  two  color-varieties;  n,  adult,  ventral  view.  (Saunders.) 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  447 

of  peas  and  Lima  beans,  and  has  been  particularly  injurious  to  corn, 
attacking  plants  an  inch  and  a  half  in  diameter  so  heavily  as  to  cause 
them  to  wilt  and  break  down.  It  has  become  locally  very  destructive 
to  wheat  also,  infesting  the  heads  when  the  kernel  is  in  the  m;lk.  At 
least  four  thousand  acres  of  grain  were  thus  destroyed  in  South  Dakota. 

This  insect  is  irregular  broad-oval  in  form,  about  half  an  inch  in 
length  by  a  quarter  of  an  inch  wide.  During  the  early  part  of  the  season 
it  is  uniformly  green  except  the  end  of  the  scutellum  and  a  narrow 
band  along  the  sides  of  the  thorax,  which  are  a  light  straw-yellow. 
There  are  also  a  few  white  Makings  over  the  upper  part  of  the  body. 
Later  the  color  changes  through  light  olive  to  dark  red,  and,  finally,  to 
dark  magenta  with  occasionally  one  or  more  indefinite  patches  of  black 
on  the  thorax.  The  eggs  are  laid  in  a  single  layer  of  from  twenty  to 
fifty.  They  are  white  and  perfectly  smooth,  the  free  end  opening  by  a 
cap-like  valve. 

The  life  history  of  this  species  has  been  very  well  made  out.  In 
fall  the  adults  burrow,  as  a  rule,  a  few  inches  into  the  soft  earth  under 
weeds  and  rubbish,  sometimes  going  as  far  as  eight  inches  under  ground, 
and  in  one  case  observed  three  feet.  They  have  also  been  found  in 
crevices  and  under  bark,  and  occasionally  in  piles  of  manure.  In  late 
March  and  early  April  they  appear  in  South  Dakota  under  weeds  and 
rubbish,  and  in  a  few  days  begin  laying  eggs,  which  hatch  within  a 
fortnight.  By  the  middle  of  June  the  half-grown  young  begin  to  over- 
spread the  fields  and  injure  cultivated  plants.  By  July  loth  the  adult 
stage  was  reached  in  1897,  and  the  bugs  began  to  gather  on  the  wheat. 
About  August  ist  eggs  for  a  second  brood  were  laid  on  various  plants, 
especially  the  Russian  thistle,  wheat,  and  corn  stalks,  the  thistles  being 
sometimes  conspicuously  whitened  by  continuous  layers  of  the  eggs. 
The  adults  of  this  generation  commonly  hibernate.  They  have,  how- 
ever, in  confinement  laid  eggs  in  November  of  the  same  year.  These 
facts  show  clearly  the  dangerous  character  of  this  insect  with  respect 
to  any  vegetation  which  it  freely  feeds  upon. 


THE   NEGRO-BUGS  (Corimelanidce). 
THE  COMMON  NEGRO-BUG.  • 
Co rimelcena  pulicaria  Germ. 

This  extremely  abundant  and  widespread  little  insect,  about  a  tenth 
of  an  inch  across,  nearly  hemispherical,  shining  black,  occurs  through- 
out the  summer  and  fall  upon  a  great  variety  of  vegetation,  including  farm 
crops  and  common  weeds,  and  has  been  occasionally  found  by  us  on  the 
sugar  beet.  It  bears  a  strong  general  resemblance  to  the  small  black  lady- 
bugs,  but  is  peculiar  in  the  fact  that  the  fore  wings  are  reduced  to  narrow 


448  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AugUSt, 

strips  beside  the  large  scutellum,  and  are  marked 
by  a  slender  line  of  white.  The  young  are  similar  to 
the  adults,  but  with  the  grayish  brown  back  of  the 
abdomen  visible,  and  the  wings,  of  course,  wanting 
or  rudimentary.  It  is  often  abundant  in  grain 
fields  and  in  grass,  but  congregates  especially 

.  Fig.   27.     The   Common 

upon  certain  common  weeds,  the  Spanish  needle  Negro-bug,  corimeiana. 
{Bidens\  being  apparently  its  favorite  food.  puiicaria,  adult,  natural 

.  jj-u  I  T37       4  7  size  and  enlarged. 

Smartweed,  pigweed,  and  rib-grass  \Plantago  lan- 

ceolata)  are  also  much  resorted  to  by  it.  We  have  found  it  on  young  corn 
in  May  doing  considerable  injury,  and  also  in  blue-grass  meadows,  appar- 
ently injuring  them.  Unlike  most  equally  abundant  Hemiptera  this  insect 
seems  to  develop  but  one  brood  a  year.  It  winters  as  an  adult,  begins 
to  breed  in  May  and  June,  and  by  the  end  of  July  the  young  are 
practically  all  full  grown. 


Substance  of  leaf  or  stem  more  or  less  eaten  away.  Injuries  by  biting 
insects. 

Leaves  cut  off  at  ground. 

THE    CUTWORMS. 

Agrotis,  Noctua,  etc. 

The  true  cutworms,  distinguished  by  the  peculiar  method  of  their 
injury  to  plants,  are  well  known  to  all  farmers,  gardeners,  and  horticul- 
turists, but  the  details  of  their  life  history,  the  conditions  under  which 
their  injuries  are  most  likely  to  be  done,  and  methods  of  prevention  and 
remedy  will  bear  frequent  repetition.  They  are  all  nocturnal  in  their 
feeding  habits,  remaining  secreted  by  day,  usually  in  the  vicinity  of  their 
food  plant.  Coming  forth  at  night  they  eat  fresh  buds  and  foliage,  cut 
off  young  plants  and  tender  stems,  often  wasting  more  than  they  con- 
sume. There  are  several  species  of  cutworms,  rarely  distinguished  by 
the  ordinary  observer  with  any  accuracy,  most  of  them  plump,  soft- 
bodied,  cylindrical  caterpillars,  dirty  grayish  or  whitish  and  variously 
spotted  and  striped. 

Young  beets  suffer  considerably  from  these  pests, which  in  Nebraska 
have  at  times  destroyed  entire  crops,  devouring  three  or  four  successive 
plantings  before  they  cease  their  work.  They  are  essentially  grass  and 
clover  insects,  and  by  far  the  greater  part  of  them  are  bred  in  pastures 
and  meadows.  The  life  histories  of  the  various  species  differ  consider- 
ably. The  eggs  are  laid  in  summer,  as  a  rule  mainly  on  grass,  but,  at 
times,  on  almost  any  kind  of  vegetation  growing  on  suitable  ground,  and 
even  on  trees  or  vegetable  trash  or  on  the  ground  itself. 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          449 

^ newly  hatched  larvae  have  but  four  pairs  of  abdominal  legs, 
and  move  at  first  like  measuring-worms,  acquiring  a  fifth  pair  later. 
When  full  grown  the  cutworms  most  commonly  pupate  under  ground, 
each  forming  a  smooth,  dark  brown  chrysalis,  from  which  in  three 
weeks  or  more  comes  some  one  of  several  species  of  dull  brownish  or 
grayish  moths  about  an  inch  and  a  half  across  the  spread  wings.  This 
hides  by  day,  like  the  larva,  and  flies  only  at  night.  These  insects  are 
usually  single-brooded,  although  some  species  have  two  or  three  genera- 
tions in  a  year.  They  hibernate  almost  invariably  as  partly  grown 
larvae,  doing  their  principal  damage  to  vegetation  during  spring  while 
finishing  their  growth. 

They  are  much  subject  to  the  attacks  of  parasites  and  other  preda- 
ceous  enemies.  Tachina  flies  fasten  their  white  eggs  to  the  back  of  the 
larva  near  the  head,  and  from  these  the  young  parasitic  maggots  pene- 
trate to  the  interior.  Small  hymenopterous  parasites  hatch  from  eggs 
deposited  within  the  bodies  of  the  caterpillars,  and  at  maturity  leave 
behind  the  shriveling  body  of  their  host,  together  with  a  little  tuft  of 
tiny  yellow  or  white  cottony  cocoons  on  a  blade  of  grass  or  the  stem  of 
a  weed.  Larger  hymenopterous  parasites,  such  as  Ophion,  also  attack 
them;  predaceous  beetles,  like  the  caterpillar-hunter  (Calosoma),  destroy 
numbers  of  them;  and  insectivorous  birds,  especially  the  robin  and 
meadow  lark,  greatly  aid  in  keeping  them  in  check.  Ground-squirrels 
also  feed  freely  upon  them,  thus  compensating  by  their  protection  of 
the  meadows  for  their  occasional  raids  upon  corn  fields  in  spring. 

Common  experience  enforces  the  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  the 
foregoing  life  history,  that  beets  should  not  be  planted  on  a  spring- 
plowing  of  sod,  since  this  is  very  likely  to  be  infested  with  cutworms, 
which  will  commonly  continue  their  attack  upon  the  young  crop  at  least 
until  the  early  summer  months.  A  sod  plowed  in  late  summer  or  early 
fall,  is,  however,  commonly  free  from  these  insects,  especially  if  it  be 
broken  so  early  as  to  offer  no  temptation  to  the  female  moths  flying 
abroad  in  summer  in  search  of  suitable  situations  for  the  deposit  of 
their  eggs.  The  margins  of  fields  may  notwithstanding  be  invaded,  and 
the  crop  be  seriously  injured  by  cutworms  coming  in  from  grass-lands 
adjacent,  and  in  this  case  either  collecting  by  hand  or  poisoning  may 
be  resorted  to.  A  very  useful  poisoned  bait  for  cutworms,  and  for 
grasshoppers  as  well,  is  made  by  stirring  together  fifty  pounds  of  bran 
and  a  pound  of  Paris  green,  and  making  of  this  a  rather  stiff  mash  with 
sweetened  water.  If  a  tablespoonful  or  two  of  this  mixture  be  placed 
at  close  intervals  along  the  rows  of  beets  in  the  evening,  the  cutworms 
will  eat  it  in  preference  to  the  living  plant,  and  will  thus  be  killed. 
Sirrine,  of  New  York,  recommends  especially  a  mixture  of  one  pound 
of  Paris  green  to  twenty  pounds  of  a  mixture  of  equal  parts  of  bran  and 
middlings,  and  this  he  says  is  most  effective  when  used  dry.  About 


45°  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt, 

the  same  results  may  be  obtained  by  heavily  spraying  a  patch  of  clover 
with  Paris  green  stirred  up  in  water,  and  then  mowing  this  poisoned 
vegetation  and  scattering  it  here  and  there  among  the  plants  in  small 
bundles  or  packages. 

Only  four  kinds  of  cutworms*  have  so  far  been  reported  as  attacking 
beets  in  America,  but  it  is  altogether  probable  that  most  of  our  common 
species  will  be  found  to  feed  upon  them,  as  upon  other  vegetation. 
Two  of  the  above  are  common  Illinois  species;  the  greasy  cutworm  and 
the  spotted  cutworm.  The  former  {Agrotis  ypsilon — Fig.  30)  is  a  some- 
what greasy-looking  smooth  caterpillar,  dirty  gray  to  blackish,  with 
small  darker  dots  and  faint  indications  of  a  paler  stripe  down  the  mid- 
dle of  the  back.  The  latter  {Noctua  c-nigrum — Fig.  28)  has  a  double 
row  of  narrow  blackish  triangles  on  the  back,  diminishing  in  size  from 
behind  forwards  and  usually  disappearing  before  reaching  the  head. 
The  army-cutworm  {Chorizagrotis  agrestis^  varies  from  light  green  to 
dark  brown  with  stripes  along  the  sides.  The  fourth  American  beet- 
cutworm  (Noctua  plecta]  is  not  known  to  us  in  the  larval  stage. 

THE  WESTERN  ARMY-CUTWORM. 

Chorizagrotis  agrestis  Grote. 

This  species  ranges  from  Nebraska  and  Texas  to  Arizona  and  Mon- 
tana. It  attracted  special  attention  in  1897  by  a  remarkably  destructive 
outbreak  in  Montana,  where  it  traveled  in  hordes,  like  the  army-worm, 
by  night,  as  its  supply  of  food  became  exhaustedf.  It  practically  swept 
the  country  clean  of  vegetation  as  it  went,  devouring  all  kinds  of  farm 
and  garden  crops  (including  beets)  as  well  as  weeds  and  grasses  and  the 
leaves  of  fruiting  shrubs  and  trees.  Immense  numbers  were  drowned 
in  irrigation  ditches.  One  section  of  a  ditch,  for  example,  two  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  long  and  two  feet  wide,  was  filled  with  a  mass  of  cutworms 

*As  this  article  is  going  to  press  we  notice  a  report  of  serious  and  peculiar  injuries  to  beets  by  the 
so-called  dark-sided  cutworm  (Carneades  messoria),  published  in  Bulletin  42  of  the  Washington  State 
Experiment  Station,  in  an  article  entitled  "A  New  Sugar  Beet  Pest,  and  Other  Insects  Attacking  the 
Beet."  The  writer,  Mr.  R.  W.  Doane,  says: 

"Among  the  various  species  of  cutworms  that  frequently  do  more  or  less  damage  to  the  beets  is  the 
dark-sided  cutworm  (Carneades  tnessorta).  These  are  dark,  earth-colored  larvae  that  feed  sometimes 
upon  the  leaves  of  the  plant,  but  more  commonly  on  the  upper  portion  of  the  root.  Sometimes  the  roots 
are  gnawed  entirely  in  two,  at  other  times  large,  ugly-looking  holes  are  made  in  the  sides,  which,  if  made 
while  the  plant  is  young,  either  wholly  destroys  it  or  causes  it  to  develop  into  a  deformed,  ill-looking  root. 
The  worms  usually  feed  only  at  night,  lying  concealed  in  the  ground  during  the  day.  In  very  badly  in- 
fested fields  we  have  often  found  five  or  six  larvae  around  a  single  beet,  usually  lying  quite  close  to  the 
root,  but  sometimes  a  few  inches  away.  When  fully  grown  these  larvae  change  to  brown  pupa:  from 
which,  some  time  later,  the  adult  moth  emerges. 

"The  best  and  often  the  cheapest  way  to  get  rid  of  these  pests  is  to  search  them  out  and  destroy 
them.  Where  indications  of  the  insect's  work  are  found,  the  worm  itself  is  almost  sure  to  be  found  in  the 
soil  not  far  away.  As  they  are  unusually  near  the  surface  they  are  not  hard  to  find,  and  one  person  can 
go  over  quite  a  large  field  in  a  day  and  destroy  nearly  all  the  worms  therein.  These  larva;  are  frequently 
found  hid  away  under  loose  boards  or  stones  lying  about  in  the  fields.  This  suggests  the  feasibility  of 
using  such  things  as  traps,  and  very  excellent  results  have  been  obtained  by  scattering  loose  boards 
around  over  the  field  and  collecting  and  destroying  any  of  the  worms  that  use  these  for  their  hiding, 
places  during  the  day." 

tBull.  Mont.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  No.  17,  pp.  10-18. 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


451 


six  to  twelve  inches  deep,  and  the  smaller  ditches  were  sometimes 
dammed  until  the  water  burst  the  banks,  carrying  bushels  of  the  still 
living  caterpillars  into  adjoining  fields. 

The  mature  larva  is  about  two  inches  long,  nearly  smooth,  light 
green  to  dark  brown  with  alternating  dark  and  light  stripes  along  the 
sides.  The  moth  is  brown  with  gray  markings,  and  a  wing  expanse  of 
about  an  inch  and  a  quarter.  The  larvae  hibernate,  like  other  cutworms, 
partly  grown,  doing  their  principal  damage  in  spring,  and  the  moths 
appearing  late  in  summer  and  fall.  Ditching  and  poisoning,  as  for  the 
common  army  worm  {Lcucania}  will,  of  course,  be  effective  against 
this  western  species.  A  barrier  of  poisoned  clover  proved  on  one  occa- 
sion to  be  an  efficient  means  of  destroying  it. 

THE   SPOTTED  CUTWORM. 

Noctua  c-nigrum  Linn. 
This  insect,  common  to  Europe  and  America,  is  best  known  as  a 

corn   cutworm,  but  destroys  also   cabbages,    beets,   and   other  garden 

plants.  We  have  bred  the  moth,  in  fact, 
from  cutworms  taken  on  beets.  The  spe- 
cies is  double-brooded,  injuries  of  the 
first  generation  being  practically  over  by 
the  first  of  May,  and  those  of  the  second 
brood  occurring  mainly  in  July  and  Au- 
gust. The  larva  is  ashy  gray  or  pale 
brownish,  about  an  inch  and  a  half  long 
when  full  grown,  and  marked  as  in  the 
accompanying  figure  (Fig.  28).  It  pu- 
pates under  ground  or  in  loose  cocoons 
at  the  surface.  The  hibernating  larvae 
begin  feeding  in  April  and  May,  and  most 
of  them  produce  adults  in  May  or  early 
June.  A  few,  however,  are  said  to  con- 
tinue much  longer,  even  as  late  as  August. 
Larvse  of  the  second  brood  begin  to  ap- 
pear in  the  latter  part  of  June,  but  are 
most  abundant  in  the  following  month. 

This  second  brood   generally  becomes 

adult    from,  late  July    to    September. 

We  have  found  a  single  small  cutworm 

of  this   species   on  a  beet  plant  June 

24th,  which  became  a  pupa  July  i8th 

and  an  adult  August  8th.     There  are 

occasional    traces    of    a    partial    third        Fig.  29.   The  Spotted  Cutworm, 

.  •          j       •          ,,  .1          c-ninrrum,  adult. 

generation  during, the  autumn  months. 


Fig.  28.     The  Spotted  Cutworm,  Noc- 
tua c-nigrum,  larva.back  and  side  views. 


452 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


A   young    specimen    taken    on  violets   September  pth.  was  nearly   full 
grown  October  ist,  when  it  was  accidentally  destroyed. 

THE  GREASY  CUTWORM. 

A  grot  is  ypsilon  Rott. 
In  this  larva  the  cutworm  habit  is  developed  to  its  fullest  extent. 

It  is  one  of  our  commonest  species,  and  a  true  cosmopolite,  its  range 

extending  around  the  world  and  including 
Australia.  A  partly  eaten  beet  leaf  was  no- 
ticed by  us  in  July,  drawn  into  a  crevice  in 
the  earth,  within  which  a  full  grown  larva  of 
this  species  was  secreted.  It  is  a  general 
feeder,  destructive  in  gardens,  and  injurious 
also  to  field  crops  and  a  variety  of  fruits* 
including  the  strawberry,  grape,  and  apple. 
The  pale  red,  nearly  spherical  eggs  are 
laid  in  patches,  often  two  or  three  layers 
deep,  not  always  on  the  food  plants  of  the 
larvse.  The  young  are  at  first  semiloopers. 
When  mature  they  are  about  an  inch  and  a 
half  long,  dirty  grayish  or  blackish,  and 
feebly  striped.  The  dark  brown  pupa  is 
found  in  the  earth.  The  life  history  of  this 
species  is  not  thoroughly  known,  but  there 
is  apparently  but  one  brood  each  year,  with 
many  occasional  irregularities  in  the  stage 
of  hibernation  and  periods  of  development. 
The  species  seems  usually  to  hibernate  as 

a  larva,  pupating  about  the  first  of  June,  and  yielding  the  moth  late  in 

this  month  and  in  July,  and  these 

moths    of    summer   origin    often 

linger    on    until    October.     The 

hibernating    larvse     are     seldom 

found    after    July.    isth.      Pupae 

have,  however,  been  found  in  win- 
ter, and  adults,  probably  emerg- 
ing from  these,  early  in  spring. 

It  is  possible  that  the  discrepancies 

of  this  record  may  be  reconciled  by  the  discrimination  of  one  or  more 

additional-broods. 

Noctua  plecta    Linn. 

This  European  cutworm  is  widely  distributed  in  the   United  States 
from  Canada  to  Texas,  and  is  moderately  common  in  Illinois  as  shown 


Fig.  30.  The  Greasy  Cutworm, 
Agrotis  ypsilon,  larva,  back  and  side 
views. 


Fig.  31.     The  Greasy  Cutworm,  Agrotis  ypsilonr 
adult. 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


453 


by  the  presence  of  the  moth  at  electric  lights  and  at  "sugar."  Its  larval 
habits  in  this  country  are  entirely  unknown,  and,  indeed,  the  larva  itself 
has  not  been  recognized  by  us.  It  is  worthy  of  mention  here,  however, 
because  of  its  injuries  to  beets  in  the  Old  World,  where  it  is  reported 
by  Kaltenbach  to  feed  on  garden  vegetables,  including  celery,  beets, 
chicory,  endive,  and  lettuce.  The  moth  is  a  trim  little  species,  slightly 
more  than  an  inch  across  the  wings,  resembling  a  dwarfed  c-nigrum 
except  for  a  well-marked  light  streak  along  the  anterior  border  of  the 
fore  wings.  In  this  country  the  insect  seems  to  be  two-brooded,  like 
c-nigrum,  the  moths  being  found  in  Illinois  in  the  latter  part  of  May  and 
in  June,  and  again  in  August. 


Leaves  rolled  at  edge  or  folded  lengthwise  of  middle,  the  rolled  or 
folded  portions  fastened  together  by  loose  webbing. 

.  LEAF-ROLLERS     {Tortricida  and  Pyraustidce). 

THE  GREENHOUSE  LEAF-ROLLER. 
Phlyctcenia  ferrugalis  Walk  {Botis  harveyana  Grote). 

No  leaf-rollers  have  hitherto  been  reported  as  injurious  to  the  beet, 
but  during  the  past  summer  we  twice  collected  from  beet  leaves  a  very 
common  greenhouse 
pest  belonging  to  one 
of  the  leaf-roller  fam- 
ilies (Pyraustidce)  and 
bred  these  larvae  to 
the  imago  of  the 

A 


mago 

above  species.  These 
insects  were  obtained 
from  beet  fields  near 
Pekin,  111.,  and  at 
Urbana.  The  active 
rusty  brown  moths,  .  ,  . 

*  '     adult,  wings  expanded;    B,    same,    wings   at   rest; 

with    wings    about  (Davis.) 

three-eighths  of  an  inch  long,  were  also  occasionally  seen  in  the  sanr.  o 

fields. 

The  caterpillar  is  translucent  green,  with  white  lines  on  the  body 
and  two  black  dots  on  the  neck  shield.  It  feeds  in  a  loose  marginal 
fold  of  the  leaf,  fastened  down  by  a  web  spun  by  itself;  or  sometimes 
it  draws  two  leaves  together,  forming  a  loosely  webbed  retreat  between 
them.  It  is  said  to  live,  when  full  grown,  in  a  webbed  concavity  on  the 
under  side  of  the  leaf,  but  according  to  our  observation  this  is  certainly 
not  always  true. 


Fig 


454  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  [August , 

This  well-known  species  is  common  to  Europe  and  America,  and 
is  at  times  very  destructive  in  greenhouses,  where  it  eats  irregular  holes 
in  the  leaves  of  various  plants.  It  is  also  reported  by  Davis  as  a 
celery  insect,  and  by  Johnson  as  injuring  young  tobacco  plants  in  hot- 
houses. The  strawberry  has  been  mentioned  among  its  food  plants  in 
England. 

Larvae  found  September  2d  in  Illinois  yielded  us  the  adult  October 
i5th,  and  the  moth  has  been  collected  by  us  late  in  April — facts  which 
indicate  the  hibernation  of  this  species  in  the  imago  stage.  The  pub- 
lished breeding  records  of  English  entomologists  indicate  a  similar 
hibernation,  moths  emerging  late  in  October  from  pupae  formed  early 
in  that  month.  The  summer  history  of  the  species  is  not  well  estab- 
lished, but  our  own  breeding-cage  records  and  greenhouse  observations 
taken  in  connection  with  a  few  scattered  published  notes  indicate  the 
possibility  of  at  least  four  generations  annually. 

During  the  past  summer  we  have  several  times  seen  small  beet 
leaves  folded  along  the  midrib,  and  on  separating  the  folds  have  found 
a  dense  silken  web  forming  a  somewhat  tubular  retreat,  in  which  lay  a 
small  slender,  green,  active  larva.  At  least  two  species  of  these  were 
recognized,  both  apparently  belonging  to  the  Tortricida.  They  were 
placed  in  breeding-cages,  but  failed  to  mature. 


Plant  more  or  less  completely  covered  or  inclosed  within  a  loose  open 
web;  the  leaves  eaten  by  spotted  or  striped  caterpillars. 

THE  GARDEN  WEB-WORMS. 
Loxostege  and  Hellula. 

Already  notorious  in  the  history  of  beet  culture  in  America  are  two 
species  of  insects  belonging  to  the  genus  Loxostege,  both  commonly 
known  as  web-worms  in  the  Western  States,  where  they  are  most 
abundant.  They  are  rather  small,  smooth,  active  larvae,  which  spin  a 
conspicuous  web  about  the  foliage  infested  by  them.  They  feed  largely 
on  garden  weeds,  such  as  purslane,  lamb's-quarters,  and  pigweed,  but 
when  excessively  abundant,  as  they  often  are  in  the  West,  they  may 
completely  destroy  beets  and  other  garden  vegetables,  and  a  great 
variety  of  weeds  and  cultivated  plants. 

A  third  species,  the  so-called  imported  garden  web-worm  {Hellula 
undalis}  is  especially  destructive  to  cabbages  and  other  Cruciferce.  It 
has  lately  made  its  appearance  in  the  eastern  United  States,  and  is  likely 
to  extend  its  range. 

The  eggs  of  the  parent  moths  of  the  web-worms  are  apparently  laid 
upon  the  plants,  above  ground.  The  larvae  make  separate  webs  about 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  455 

the  foliage  upon  which  they  are  feeding,  each  with  a  closely  webbed 
inner  retreat  for  concealment.  A  single  leaf  or  an  entire  plant  may 
thus  be  inclosed.  The  brown  pupa  of  the  native  web-worms  is  formed 
in  an  elongate  cocoon  within  a  silken  tube  among  the  surface  debris  or 
in  the  loose  earth  beneath  the  plant.  The  paler  pupa  of  the  imported 
web-worm  is  inclosed  in  a  compact  white  silken  cocoon.  The  moths 
of  these  species  are  small,  brownish,  buff,  or  gray,  with  broad  sub- 
triangular  wings,  and  present  a  triangular  outline  when  at  rest.  The 
species  seem  to  hibernate  in  the  cocoon,  either  as  larvae  or  pupae. 
There  are  three  or  more  broods  in  a  year,  usually  becoming  more 
destructive  as  the  season  progresses.  The  numerous  dipterous  and 
hymenopterous  parasites  of  these  species,  together  with  their  other 
enemies,  insect  and  vertebrate,  seem  under  ordinary  conditions  to  keep 
them  well  in  check. 

The  protective  web  spun  by  these  caterpillars  is  not  sufficiently 
dense  to  repel  an  arsenical  spray,  and  they  are  consequently  easily  de- 
stroyed and  their  injuries  checked  if  action  is  prompt  and  vigorous. 
Their  attack  in  the  beet  field  often  develops  very  rapidly,  and  must 
receive  immediate  attention  if  serious  mischief  is  to  be  prevented.  If 
beets  are  to  be  planted  on  land  previously  covered  with  pigweed,  purs- 
lane, or  lamb's-quarters,  it  has  been  found  useful  to  harrow  the  land 
thoroughly  in  fall  to  uncover  the  hibernating  larvae  and  pupae  in  their 
cocoons,  and  thus  to  expose  them  to  destruction  by  the  weather  and 
their  natural  enemies. 

Four  species  of  native  web-worms  have  been  observed  in  Nebraska, 
where  these  insects  have  been  most  extensively  studied,  three  of  them 
feeding  upon  beets  and  one  on  lamb's-quarters  and  hence  likely  to  feed 
also  upon  the  beet.  Two  of  these  have  been  well  studied;  the  common 
web-worm  {Loxostege  similalis)  and  the  beet  web-worm  (Z.  sticticalis). 
The  first  is  common  in  Illinois,  although  it  has  never  proven  very 
destructive  here,  and  the  second  probably  occurs  in  the  state,  although 
it  has  not  yet  been  noticed  here  to  our  knowledge.  Another  common 
species  of  the  genus,  L.  chortalis,  occurs  also  in  Illinois,  and  may  quite 
possibly  attack  the  beet.  The  larvae  of  similalis  and  sticticalis  are  easily 
distinguished.  That  of  similalis  (Fig.  33,  a)  varies  from  pale  yellowish 
to  dusky,  with  symmetrically  placed  black  dots  on  each  segment,  and 
with  a  pair  of  narrow  pale  lines  down  the  middle  of  the  back  and  one 
such  on  each  side  of  the  body.  The  larva  of  sticticalis  (Fig.  35,  a)  is 
darker,  the  dots  are  black  with  white  centers,  and  there  are  three  broad 
dark  stripes  above.  The  larva  of  the  imported  web-worm  (Hellula 
undalis — Fig.  38,  b,  c)  is  yellowish  or  grayish,  with  five  well-marked 
brownish  purple  stripes  above,  but  no  conspicuous  dots. 


45  6 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


Fig.  33.  The  Common  Garden  Web-worm,  Lox- 
ostege  similalis;  a,  larva;  b,  middle  segment  of  same, 
side  view;  c,  last  segment  of  same,  top  view;  d,  pupa; 
e,  last  segment  of  same.  (Riley,  U.  S.  Dept.  of 
Agriculture.) 


THE  COMMON  GARDEN  WEB-WORM. 

Loxostege  simiialis  Guen. 
\{Eurycreon  rantalis  Guen.,  Botis  posticata  G.  &  R.) 

This  common  and  widely 
distributed  web-worm  breeds 
largely  on  pigweed  (Amarantus) 
and  purslane,  but  has  not  attract- 
ed especial  attention  in  Illinois 
by  its  injuries  to  cultivated  crops. 
Considerable  numbers  were  pres- 
ent in  beet  fields  last  season  in 
this  state,  however,  and  a  notice- 
able amount  of  damage  was 
done.*  A  full  list  of  its  food 
plants  appears  in  the  U.  S.  En- 
tomological Report  for  1885,  page  267.  Although  this  species  has  been 
most  abundant  in  the  region  west  of  the  Mississippi,  it  is  distributed 
throughout  the  United  States  and  occurs  also  in  South  America.  It  is 
a  common  insect  in  Illinois,  and  has  been  reported  by  Webster  as  one 
of  the  most  abundant  moths  on  buckwheat  in  Indiana.  It  has  been 
recorded  as  common  and  injurious  in  Mississippi  and  the  Western 
States,  particularly  in  Nebraska,  where  it  has  been  a  very  destructive 
species,  a  serious  outbreak  occurring  in  1885  and  another  in  1892.  At 
both  these  times  this  insect  destroyed  almost  all  the  vegetation  which 
came  in  its  way.  The  corn  crop  of  the  region  was  seriously  injured, 
and  many  fields  of  beets  were  completely  stripped. 

The  larvae  spin  loose  but  evident  individual  webs,  with  usually  a 
single  web-worm  to  each,  inclosing  more  or  less  of  the  foliage  of  the  in- 
fested plant.  On  beets  a  single  leaf  is  often  lightly  webbed  over,  with 
a  closer  retreat  along  the  midrib  where  the  leaf  narrows  into  the  stem. 
Most  commonly,  however,  especially  if  the  plant  be  small,  the  entire 
base  is  inclosed  in  a  thin  web,  with  a  tubular  retreat  extending  into  the 
loose  earth  close  by.  The  greatest  damage  is  done  within  these  webs 
by  the  eating  of  the  growing  bud,  thus,  according  to  one  beet  grower, 
causing  the  root  to  rot  in  the  center  above.  When  very  young  the  larvae 
gnaw  the  surface  of  the  leaves,  but  later  they  rag  them  with  large  irregu- 
lar holes,  or  even  devour  them  almost  wholly,  leaving  a  blackened  web- 
covered  skeleton. 

The  eggs  of  this  insect  have  not  been  seen  by  us,  and  have  not  been 
described.  They  are  apparently  laid  upon  the  leaves.  The  larvae  are 
whitish  or  dusky,  with  black  dots.  They  are  very  active,  feigning  death 

*An  attack  on  soy-beans  at  Brighton,  Macoupin  county.  111.,  was  reported  to  us  by  a  correspondent, 
and  specimens  of  the  larvse  sent,  which  we  bred  to  the  adult  of  this  species. 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  457 

when  disturbed,  or  spinning  a  thread,  dropping  to  the  ground,  and  slip- 
ping out  of  sight  in  crevices  or  in  the  loose  earth.  Most  of  the  feeding 
is  done  at  night,  the  larvae  usually  resting  in  the  web  by  day.  The  full 
grown  web-worm  spins  a  delicate  brownish  cocoon  within  its  silken 
retreat  in  the  earth,  and  changes  there  to  a  brown  chrysalis  with  a  pair 
of  terminal  prominences  each  bearing  three  short  spines  at  the  posterior 
tip  of  the  body.  The  moth  is  buffy  or  grayish,  with  darker  markings 
as  in  the  figure.  Like  the  other  moths  of  its  family  it  is  strongly  at- 
tracted to  lights. 

This  species  seems  to  hibernate  as  a  moth,  and  the  published  data, 
together  with  those  in  our  possession,  indicate  more  or  less  definitely 
the  occurrence  of  about  four  generations  in  a  year.  The  first  moths  of 
the  season  noticed  in  the  West  in  the  latitude  of  central  Illinois  appeared 
late  in  May  and  early  in  June.  These  probably  developed  from  an  un- 
observed generation  of  larvae,  the  descendants  of  the  hibernating  images. 
A  brood  of  larvae  followed  in  June,  becoming  adult  early  in  July;  and 
another  came  about  the  middle  of  that  month,  examples  occurring  on 
sugar  beets  in  Illinois  July  i3th.  Larvae  of  this  brood  taken  from  sugar 
beets  July  26th  had  pupated  July  3ist,  and  a  moth  emerged  August  isth. 
Adults  of  this  brood  have  been  taken  by  us  abundantly  in  late  July  and 
in  August.  Larvae  found  in  Kansas  August  nth  were  thought  by  Dr. 
Riley  to  indicate  a  fou-rth  larval  brood.  We  have  had  pupae  and  adult 
larvae  from  soy-beans,  collected  August  27th.  These  had  nearly  all 
pupated  by  September  4th,  and  the  adults  emerged  September  icth  to 
i3th.  September  ist  and  2d,  full  grown  larvae  and  moths  were  very 
common  in  our  beet  fields  and  also  on  purslane  and  pigweed  (Ama- 
rantus).  Larvae  put  in  breeding-cages  entered  the  earth  for  pupation 
September  6th  to  nth,  emerging  October  i5th  to  i8th.  Some  very 
young  larvae,  perhaps  representing  a  fifth  brood,  were  also  noticed  Sep- 
tember 2d.  The  young  web-worm  grows  rapidly,  apparently  requiring 
not  more  than  ten  days  to  mature. 

Three  hymenopterous  parasites  have  been  reared  from  this  species: 
Limneria  eurycreontis  Ashm.,  Agathis  exoratus  Cr.,  and  a  species  of 
Pachymerus.  A  Tachina  fly  has  been  bred  from  it  which  appears  to 
be  an  important  parasite.  Ladybirds,  ground-beetles,  etc.,  also  prey 
upon  it. 

THE  BEET  WEB-WORM. 
Loxostege   sticticalis    Linn. 

This  species  suddenly  appeared  in  great  numbers  in  Nebraska  in 
sugar-beet  plantations  in  1892,  causing  great  destruction  to  the  beet, 
but  not  to  other  cultivated  plants.  The  injury  was  mainly  done  within 
a  few  days,  one  plat,  for  example,  losing  half  its  foliage  within  thirty- 
six  hours  after  the  first  signs  of  injury  were  noticed.  The  destruction 


458 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


was  greatest  on  old  beet  land  and  in  the  middle  of  large  fields  where 
weeds  had  been  most  abundant  the  year  before,  and  especially  on  sandy 
soil  and  comparatively  high  ground.  Another  injurious  brood  appeared 


The  Beet  Web-worm,  Lexostege  sticticalis: 
a,  eggs  b,  same,  enlarged;  c,  cocoon  of  pupa;  d,  larval 
case;  e  posterior  tip  of  pupa.  (Riley,  U.  S.  Dept.  of 


Fig.  36.  The  Beet  Web-worm, 
Loxostege  sticticalis:  a,  larval  case; 
b,  same,  occupied  by  cocoon  of  a  par- 
asite; c,  pupa.  (Riley,  U.  S.  Dept. 
of  Agriculture.) 


Agriculture.) 

later  in  the  same  season.  The  usual  food  plant  of  this  web-worm  is 
believed  to  be  lamb's-quarters  {Chenopodium  album),  and  so  serious  an 
injury  to  beets  as  that  described  above  is  altogether  exceptional. 

This  species  inhabits  Nebraska  and  adjoining  states,  and  has  also 
been  taken  in  Michigan,  but  it  is  not  yet  known  to  occur  in  Illinois. 
It  has  been  found  on  Amarantus  in  Kansas  and  Nebraska,  and  on  tansy 
in  Michigan. 


Fig.  35-  The  Beet  Web-worm,  Loxo- 
stege sticticalis:  a,  larva;  b,  an  abdominal 
segment  of  same,  top  view;  c,  same,  side 
view.  (Riley,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


Fig.  37.     The  Beet  Web-worm,  Loxostege  sticticalis,  adult. 
(Riley,  U.  S.  Dept  of  Agriculture.) 


The  pale  yellow,  very  flat,  circular  eggs  are  attached  to  the  leaf 
surface  singly  or  in  an  overlapping  row  of  two  to  five  or  more.  The 
caterpillar,  we  are  informed  by  Prof.  Bruner,  does  not  web  the  vegeta- 
tion together  so  freely  as  does  that  of  the  garden  web-worm.  Besides 
the  loose  cover  to  the  leaf  or  plant  it  makes  a  tubular  silken  burrow  in 


ipoo.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


459 


the  earth  or  in  the  surface  debris  at  the  base  of  the  plant,  and  when  full 
grown  constructs  within  this  a  thin  cocoon  about  twice  its  own  length, 
— or,  in  the  case  of  hibernating  larvae,  about  thrice  its  length, — in  which 
it  changes  to  a  dark  brown  pupa,  this  stage  lasting  about  two  weeks. 
The  larvae  of  the  last  brood  winter  in  their  tubular  retreats,  changing  to 
pupae  the  following  May,  and  soon  after  emerging  as  moths.  A  June 
brood  of  larvae,  not  yet  observed  and  probably  not  abundant,  must 
come  from  these  moths,  in  turn  becoming  adult,  this  brood  of  moths 
producing  the  destructive  Nebraska  brood  of  1892,  which  was  at  its 
worst  during  the  third  week  of  July.  A  presumptive  third  brood  of 
larvae  reached  its  maximum  that  year  about  the  end  of  August,  and  en- 
tered the  ground  for  hibernation.  A  few  of  these  larvae  gave  origin  to 
the  moth  in  September  and  October,  and  these  may  exceptionally  pro- 
duce a  fourth  larval  brood.  In  Michigan  tansy  patches  a  brood  of  larvae 
appeared  in  August,  probably  corresponding  to  the  second  or  late  July 
brood  in  Nebraska,  the  third  brood  following  in  the  latter  part  of  Sep- 
tember. These  changed  to  moths  the  following  May  in  breeding- cages. 
The  species  is  unusually  subject  to  parasitism  by  several  species  of 
Hymetwptera  and  at  least  one  of  Diptera. 


THE  IMPORTED  GARDEN  WEB-WORM. 
Hellula  undalis  Fabr. 

This  garden  pest  is  especially  destructive  to  cabbages,  turnips,  and 
other   Cruciferce,   but  is   also  reported  as  feeding  on  purslane  and  as 

attacking  beets.  It  was  first 
known  to  occur  in  this 
country  in  1895,  when  it 
was  found  very  destructive 
to  cabbage  in  the  vicinity 
of  Charleston,  S.  C.  In  1898 
it  appeared  near  Augusta, 
Ga.,  causing  a  loss  variously 
estimated  at  from  $15,000 
to  $50,000.*  It  inhabits 
Asia,  southern  Europe,  and 
Australia,  and  is  obviously 
of  European  importation, 
doubtless  of  comparatively 
recent  date.  The  moth  is 
also  said  to  have  been  col- 
lected in  southern  California,  and  perhaps  in  Texas.  It  is  seriously 
injurious  in  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  and  Alabama,  and  has  also  ap- 

*Bull.  No.  19,  N.  S.,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  52. 


Fig.  38.  The  Imported  Garden  Web-worm,  Hellula  unda- 
lis: a,  adult;  b,  larva,  side  view;  c,  same,  top  view;  d,  pupa 
(Chittenden,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


460  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

peared  at  Los  Angeles,  California.  As  it  is  of  tropical  and  subtropical 
distribution  mainly,  it  does  not  at  present  threaten  serious  injury  in  the 
great  beet-growing  districts  of  the  country.  Its  injuries  to  cabbages  in 
Georgia  were  apparently  increased  by  the  slow  growth  of  vegetation  due 
to  a  rainy  and  backward  season.  The  egg  being  laid  in  the  heart  of 
the  growing  plant  the  hatching  larvae  are  generally  carried  out  upon  the 
unfolding  leaf,  but  on  the  occasion  referred  to  the  growth  was  compar- 
atively slow,  and  the  larvae  consequently  frequently  attacked  the  heart 
of  the  plant  with  destructive  effect. 

The  eggs  hatch  in  from  ten  to  fourteen  days.  The  narrowly  striped 
full  grown  larva  is  half  to  two-thirds  of  an  inch  long.  It  spins  a  web 
about  itself,  extending  this  with  its  own  growth.  In  breeding-cages  the 
pupa  was  formed  in  a  rather  compact  white  silken  cocoon  about  three- 
eighths  of  an  inch  long.  It  is  three-tenths  of  an  inch  in  length,  light 
yellowish  brown,  with  a  pruinose  surface  bloom  and  a  median  dorsal 
stripe.  The  adult  is  about  five-eighths  of  an  inch  across  the  expanded 
wings,  grayish,  with  whitish  and  blackish  lines  in  patches.  The  princi- 
pal injuries  seem  to  be  done  during  the  latter  part  of  the  year,  in 
August,  September,  and  the  fore  part  of  October.  In  breeding-cages 
moths  have  begun  to  emerge  November  2ist — a  fact  which  would  seem 
to  indicate  hibernation  as  an  adult.  The  number  of  generations  annually 
is  unknown.  The  larva  is  parasitized  by  a  Tachina  fly  (Exorista  piste 
Walk.)  and  probably  by  an  ichneumon  {Limner ia  tibiator  Cr.). 

It  is  evident  that  this  species  can  be  easily  transported,  especially 
on  cabbage,  either  in  egg,  larval,  or  pupal  stage,  and  it  is  practically 
certain,  consequently,  to  extend  its  range  according  to  its  capacity  to 
endure  our  climate.  As  it  is  a  southern  species  in  the  Old  World,  it 
will  perhaps  not  become  general  in  the  United  States. 

Leaves  riddled  by  small  holes  usually  more  or  less  definitely  circular. 
Many  small  hard-shelled  leaf-beetles  present. 

THE   LEAF-BEETLES. 

Chrysomelidce. 

(PL  IV.,  Fig.  2;  Pis.  V.-VIIL;  PL  IX.,  Fig.  i.) 
The  adults  of  several  of  the  species  of  the  great  family  of  leaf- 
beetles  feed  upon  beet  leaves  and  are  commonly  present  in  beet  fields 
in  sufficient  number  to  make  them  a  prominent  feature  of  the  insect  life 
of  the  crop.  Most  of  these  species  pass  the  larval  stage  on  the  roots 
or  leaves  of  other  plants,  infesting  the  beet,  with  various  other  kinds  of 
vegetation,  when  they  become  adult.  There  are  a  few  species,  however, 
which  live  upon  the  beet  as  larvae  also,  and  one  of  these  at  least  is  a 
beet  pest  of  the  first  importance. 


IpOO.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  461 

The  beet  leaf-beetles  vary  in  size  from  small  to  minute.  The  wing- 
covers  are  often  longitudinally  striped,  or  in  a  very  few  cases  spotted, 
and  still  other  species,  especially  the  smaller  forms,  have  a  uniform 
metallic  luster — bronze,  green,  or  black.  The  leaf-beetles  should  be 
carefully  distinguished  from  the  beneficial  ladybugs  {Coccinellidtz),  of 
similar  form  and  size  and  also  often  abundant  upon  the  beet  leaves. 
The  latter  have  wing-covers  either  plain  yellowish  or  spotted  with  black, 
or,  in  the  smaller  forms,  plain  black,  often  with  red  or  white  spots. 

The  leaf-beetles  commonly  riddle  the  leaf  with  small  holes,  and  if 
abundant  may  seriously  injure  the  plant  or  even  destroy  the  crop  when 
it  is  still  young.  Often  the  injury  does  not  extend  at  first  entirely 
through  the  leaf,  the  epidermis  of  the  opposite  side  being  left  unbroken, 
but  this  soon  shrivels  and  breaks  away  and  a  perforation  results.  This 
is  usually  the  case  with  young  larvse  or  with  the  smaller  flea-beetles. 
The  holes  made  by  the  cucumber  beetles  and  their  allies  {Diabrotica) 
are  more  irregular  than  those  made  by  flea-beetles,  the  latter  being 
small  and  approximately  circular.  If  the  injured  leaf  be  young  the 
holes  increase  with  its  growth,  and  also  change  form,  becoming  longer 
in  the  direction  of.  its  length.  They  are  sometimes  so  numerous  as  to 
pepper  the  leaf  thickly  as  if  it  had  been  riddled  by  fine  shot,  and  as  they 
increase  in  size  the  substance  often  breaks  away  between  them,  making 
large  irregular  openings. 

The  numerous  species  of  this  family  which  breed  on  cultivated 
plants  other  than  beets  are  not  likely  to  injure  beets  seriously  except  in 
the  immediate  vicinity  of  such  plants.  Those  which  breed  on  weeds 
are  more  likely  to  be  injurious,  especially  in  weedy  fields.  Those  which 
breed  on  the  beet  leaf  itself  have  rarely  been  destructively  abundant  on 
that  plant,  but  are  liable  to  become  so  at  any  time. 

Since  all  these  insects,  in  both  the  adult  and  larval  stages,  feed  ex- 
posed upon  the  surface  of  the  leaf,  biting  and  devouring  the  substance 
of  it,  they  may  be  destroyed  by  the  ordinary  insecticides,  especially  the 
arsenical  sprays.  The  main  difficulty  in  the  application  of  these  is  their 
liability  to  run  off  the  smooth  surface  of  the  leaf,  but  this  may  be  pre- 
vented in  great  measure  and  the  efficiency  of  the  insecticide  increased 
by  a  combination  with  the  Bordeaux  mixture,  as  described  on  another 
page.*  Professor  Garman,  of  Kentucky,  has  found,  indeed,  that  Bor- 
deaux mixture  alone  is  an  efficient  insecticide  for  certain  of  the  flea- 
beetles. 

The  most  serious  damage  by  insects  of  this  class  is  done  when  the 
beet  is  very  young.  Here  spraying  is  obviously  futile,  since  the  leaves 
would  be  eaten  before  the  insects  were  thoroughly  poisoned.  This  crisis 
may  often  be  avoided,  however,  by  early  planting  and  active  cultivation, 
pushing  the  plant  rapidly  forward  before  the  attack  is  fully  developed. 

*See  p.  401. 


462  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

The  eggs  of  insects  of  this  family  are  laid  either  upon  the  leaves  of 
the  plant  infested  by  the  larvae  or  on  its  roots  or  in  the  ground  close  by. 
The  root-feeding  larvae  are  usually  whitish  and  slender,  but  the  leaf-eat- 
ing species  are  darker,  shorter,  and  thicker,  and  often  with  the  segments 
strongly  marked..  The  larvae. change  to  whitish  pupae  in  the  earth,  about 
the  base  of  the  plant  infested  by  them.  As  a  general  rule  the  species 
pass  the  winter  as  adults,  are  found  feeding  on  the  leaves  in  May, 
and  produce  larvae  in  June,  adults  from  which  are  present  in  July  and 
August.  Two  and  even  three  broods  may  occur  before  the  end  of  the 
season,  but  in  many  root-feeding  forms  there  is  but  one  each  year.  The 
important  genus  Systena  forms  a  notable  exception  to  the  foregoing 
account,  hibernating  either  as  larva  or  egg,  and  producing  a  single 
brood  of  adults  in  summer.  Colaspis  seems  to  have  a  similar  history  to 
Systena,  and  Chcetocnema  departs  from  that  given  above  by  the  fact  that 
its  single  brood  of  larvae  appears  about  a  month  later. 

The  greater  part  of  the  beet  leaf-beetles  belong  to  the  group  com- 
monly known  as  flea-beetles  because  of  the  expert  quickness  and  energy 
with  which  they  leap  when  disturbed.  This  group  can  be  distinguished 
from  other  beetles  of  the  family  by  the  very  thick  hind  thighs,  shaped 
somewhat  like  those  of  a  grasshopper.  Other  members  of  this  family 
fly  rather  than  leap  when  alarmed,  their  hind  thighs  being  of  ordinary 
size.  The  species  of  flea-beetles  infesting  the  beet  are  so  numerous,  the 
individuals  so  small,  and  the  characters  distinguishing  them  so  technical 
and  obscure,  that  a  discrimination  of  the  species — useless  as  it  is  for 
economic  purposes — will  not  be  attempted  in  this  paper.  The  entomolo- 
gist interested  in  specific  characters  is  referred  to  Dr.  Horn's  "Synopsis 
of  the  Halticini  of  Boreal  America. >H  Certain  of  these  jumping  beetles 
are,  however,  so  common  and  occasionally  destructive  in  the  beet  field 
that  they  are  deserving  of  special  mention. 

The  yellow-black  flea-beetle  {Disonycha  xanthomelana — PI.  V.,  VI.) 
is  one  of  the  commoner  beet  insects,  both  larva  and  adult  feeding  upon 
the  leaves.  It  may  be  distinguished  among  the  flea-beetles  by  its  com- 
paratively large  size  (its  length  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch),  by  its 
metallic  greenish-blue  or  black  head  and  wing-covers,  with  the  thorax 
uniform  pale  yellowish  above  and  black  beneath  and  the  abdomen 
entirely  yellow  beneath.  A  much  smaller,  also  very  abundant,  species 
whose  injuries  in  spring  frequently  attract  attention,  is  the  pale-striped 
flea-beetle  {Systena  taniata — Fig.  39).  This  is  about  an  eighth  of  an 
inch  in  length,  light  yellowish  brown  in  general  color,  with  a  broad  pale 
stripe  down  each  wing-cover. "j" 

Trans.  Am.  Ent.  Soc.,  Vol.  XVI.  (1889),  pp.  163-320. 

tOther  species  which  have  been  found  on  beets,  many  of  them  more  or  less  injurious,  are  Disonchya. 
crtnicollis,  D.  triangularis,  and  D.  cervicalis,  Systena  hudsonias  and  S.frontalis,  Phyllotreta  •vittata, 
P.  albionica,  and  P.  decipiens,  Epitrix  brevis,  Crepidodera  atriventris,  Glyptina  brunnea,  Longilarsus 
tnclanurus,  Chcetocnema  dentzculata,  C.  pulicaria,  and  C.  confinfs,  and  Psylliodes  punctulata  and  P. 


1900.]        ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          463 

The  leaf-beetles  which  do  not  have  the  leaping  habit  are  fewer  in 
number  and  much  more  readily  discriminated.  The  two  "  French  bugs" 
{Monoxia),  not  found  in  Illinois,  are  either  pale  yellowish  with  indefinite 
spots  (^M.  consputa)  or  uniform  in  color  but  varying  from  yellow  to  black, 
rarely  with  a  more  or  less  distinct  pair  of  dark  stripes  on  the  wing-covers 
(Af.  puncticollis}.  The  beetle  of  the  northern  corn  root  worm  {Diabrotica 
longicornis — Fig.  49)  is  uniform  green;  that  of  the  southern  corn  root 
worm  (Z>.  12-punctata — Fig.  45),  generally  yellow  with  three  cross 
rows  of  black  dots  on  the  wing-covers,  four  in  each  row.  The  common 
cucumber  beetle  (D.  vittata — Fig.  46  a)  is  striped  with  black  and  yellow; 
and  the  grape-vine  Colaspis  (C.  brunnea — PI.  IX.,  Fig.  i)  is  a  thick 
clay-yellowish  beetle  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long,  with  cylindrical 
thorax  only  about  half  as  wide  as  the  body  across  the  prominent 
shoulders. 

THE  LARGER  STRIPED-FLEA-BEETLE. 
Disonycha  crenicollis  Say. 

This  rather  large  flea-beetle,  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  length, 
striped  with  pale  yellow  and  black  and  with  a  pair  of  black  dots  near 
the  middle  of  the  yellow  thorax,  has  been  occasionally  found  by  us  in 
the  beet  fields  of  Illinois  in  summer  and  fall,  and  has  also  been  seen  on 
beets  in  Nebraska.  It  ranges  from  New  York  and  Iowa  to  Texas  and 
Mexico.  Its  larval  habits  are  not  known,  but  those  of  related  species 
feed  exposed  upon  the  leaves  of  beets  and  other  plants.  This  beetle  also 
injures  strawberry  leaves,  and  it  is  one  of  the  common  melon  beetles  of 
southern  Illinois.  It  hibernates  as  an  adult,  but  the  number  of  its  suc- 
cessive broods  has  never  been  determined. 

'    THE  THREE-SPOTTED  FLEA-BEETLE. 
Disonycha  triangularis  Say. 
(PI.  IV.,  Fig.  2.) 

This  beetle  is  black  except  the  thorax,  which  is  pale  yellowish 
above  and  bears  three  small  dots  arranged  as  a  triangle,  the  middle  one 
of  the  three  usually  very  small.  It  feeds  commonly  on  leaves  of  the 
sugar  beet  in  Illinois,  on  lamb's-quarters,  apparently  its  favorite  food, 
and  also  on  the  spiny  pigweed  {Amarantus}.  It  is  found  throughout 
the  United  States  and  Canada.  It  hibernates  as  an  adult,  occurring 
not  uncommonly  in  our  January  collections.  We  have  taken  it  fre- 
quently in  July,  and  occasionally  also  in  late  August  and  early  fall.  Its 
life  history  is  not  known  except'by  analogy  with  that  of  the  following 
species.  It  occurs  throughout  the  United  States  east  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains  and  in  Canada. 


464  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt, 

THE  YELLOW-BACK  FLEA-BEETLE. 

Disonycha  xanthomelcena  Dalra. 

{Disonycha  collaris  Fabr.) 

(PI.  V.,  VI.) 

At  any  time  throughout  the  season  from  early  spring  to  fall  the 
beet  leaves  may  become  riddled  with  small  round  holes  usually  from  an 
eighth  to  a  fourth  of  an  inch  in  diameter.  This  very  common  injury  is 
most  frequently  done,  according  to  our  observation,  by  the  larvae  and 
adults  of  this  common  flea-beetle  of  the  beet.  The  adult  insect  is  about 
a  quarter  of  an  inch  long,  steel-blue  to  blackish  above,  with  pale  yellow 
thorax  without  spots;  the  larva  is  grayish  white,  cylindrical  in  general 
form,  and  also  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  long.  The  segments  are 
strongly  marked,  each  bearing  a  row  of  raised  tubercles,  with  a  stiff 
black  hair  from  the  tip  of  each  tubercle.  The  larvae  commonly  feed 
from  the  under  side  of  the  leaf,  and  drop  to  the  ground  when  disturbed. 
When  young  they  merely  gnaw  the  surface,  causing  discolored  spots  to 
appear  on  the  upper  side,  but  when  older  they  eat  entirely  through  the 
leaf.  They  are  somewhat  gregarious,  especially  when  young,  keeping 
together  and  moving  in  company  from  one  leaf  to  another. 

The  species  ranges  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Atlantic  and 
Gulf  coast,  and  is  also  reported  from  Montana  and  British  America. 
It  has  been  treated  as  a  spinach  insect,  attacking  this  plant  as  it  does 
the  beet,  and  the  beetles  have  been  found  feeding  on  lamb's-quarters, 
pigweed,  and  a  species  of  chickweed  {Stellaria  media). 

There  seem  to  be  two  broods  in  a  season.  The  female  beetles 
emerge  from  their  winter  quarters  in  April  and  May,  and  lay  their  eggs 
in  those  months  and  in  early  June  at  the  bases  of  the  plants  infested,  on 
bits  of  leaf  or  earth,  or  even  within  the  earth.  The  eggs  are  orange- 
colored,  and  placed  on  end  like  those  of  the  potato  beetle.  They 
begin  to  hatch  in  April  or  May,  according  to  locality,  and  continue  to 
hatch  into  June  and  even  into  early  July.  Most  of  the  larvae  of  this 
generation  have  attained  their  growth  and  entered  the  earth  for  pupa- 
tion late  in  June  and  early  in  July,  and  beetles  begin  to  emerge  in  about 
a  month  from  the  time  of  the  first  deposit  of  the  eggs.  Eggs  deposited 
June"2oth  at  Urbana  gave  origin  to  the  adult  July  25th,  and  others  ob- 
tained June  ayth  and  28th  yielded  larvae  which  began  to  pupate  July 
i5th  and  to  yield  adults  July  25th.  The  beetles  of  the  second  genera- 
tion lay  their  eggs  in  late  July,  August,  and  early  September,  and  the 
beetles  of  this  second  brood  mature  before  winter  sets  in.  Miss  Murt- 
feldt  has  found  the  larvae  feeding  upon  spinach  leaves  near  St.  Louis  in 
April  and  May,  the  first  beetles  from  these  larvae  appearing  late  in  the 
latter  month.  In  the  northern  half  of  Illinois  the  development  is  some- 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  465 

what  later.     A  dipterous  parasite  {Hypostena  barbata)  was  bred  by  us 
in  June  from  the  beetle. 

Disonycha   cervicalis  Lee. 

This  species  is  yellow  and  black  like  D.  xanthomelcena,  but  differs 
in  the  fact  that  the  body  is  entirely  yellow  beneath,  while  in  xanthome- 
Icena  the  under  side  of  the  thorax  is  black.  It  is  recorded  by  Bruner  as 
a  beet  insect  in  Nebraska.  Although  it  occurs  in  Georgia  we  have  not 
yet  seen  it  in  Illinois. 

Crepidodera  atriventris  Melsh. 

A  tiny  clay-colored  species,  of  whose  habits  little  is  known.  It  was 
found  by  us  on  sugar  beets  in  early  October,  and  is  recorded  by  Web- 
ster from  buckwheat  September  7th.  It  is  common  in  Illinois,  where 
it  hibernates  as  an  adult,  occurring  in  our  collections  in  December  and 
March.  Our  specimens  have  been  taken,  however,  mainly  late  in  April, 
in  May,  and  in  July. 

THE  POTATO  FLEA-BEETLE. 
Epitrix  cucumeris  Harr. 

This  very  small,  blackish,  faintly  shining,  minutely  punctured  spe- 
cies lives  as  a  larva,  so  far  as  known,  only  on  the  roots  of  solanaceous 
plants  (potato,  tomato,  egg-plant,  tobacco,  etc.).  The  beetles  are  also 
practically  confined  to  plants  of  this  order  for  food  when  these  are 
available,  but,  nevertheless,  infest  other  plants  occasionally.  They 
have  been  found  abundant  iri  Nebraska  on  the  potato,  horse-nettle,  and 
on  beets,  riddling  the  leaves  of  all  these  plants  with  minute  holes.  We 
have  taken  them  several  times  in  small  numbers  on  sugar  beets  in  Illi- 
nois. They  are  also  recorded  as  injurious  to  celery,  sweet-potatoes, 
raspberry,  turnip,  cabbage,  and  petunia,  and  have  been  found  by  us 
doing  much  injury  to  young  potatoes  by  gnawing  the  sprouts.  The  larvae 
are  not  leaf-miners,  as  they  are  often  said  to  be,  but  feed  upon  the  roots, 
being  especially  injurious  to  those  of  the  potato,  tomato,  and  egg-plant. 
They  bore  into  potatoes,  often  making  them  "pimply." 

There  is  probably  but  one  brood  in  a  year,  the  eggs  being  laid  in 
June,  the  larvae  feeding  in  June  and  July,  and  pupating  in  the  earth. 
The  adults,  issuing  in  July  and  August,  hibernate,  and  feed  again  in 
spring,  disappearing  after  the  eggs  are  laid  in  June.  They  are  some- 
times parasitized  by  a  hymenopterous  insect,  probably  one  of  the  Bra- 
conidce.  The  proximity  of  beets  to  any  of  the  cultivated  food  plants 
mentioned  above  or  to  Jamestown  weed  and  other  wild  members  of  its 
favorite  family  would  of  course  expose  the  beet  field  to  injury  by  this 
insect. 


466  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  \August, 

Epitrix  brevis  Schwa  rz. 
(PL  VII. ,  Fig.  i.) 

This  very  minute,  black,  strongly  punctured  flea-beetle  is  doubtless 
frequently  overlooked  on  account  of  its  small  size.  Outside  of  Illinois 
it  is  known  to  us  from  Florida,  Louisiana,  and  Texas.  It  is  somewhat 
common  in  this  state,  and  many  examples  have  been  taken  at  Urbana 
in  October  on  sugar  beets.  It  was  originally  described  from  specimens 
taken  on  the  black  nightshade  {Solanum  nigrum).  The  larva  probably 
feeds  on  roots  of  Solanacece. 

Chcetocnema  denticulata  111. 

This  flea-beetle  is  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  in  length  and  of  a 
uniform  metallic  bronze  color.  It  feeds  principally  upon  grass  and 
grain,  but  has  been  found  injuring  beets  to  some  noticeable  extent  in 
Nebraska  and  in  Illinois.  In  the  Eastern  States  it  has  been  reported  as 
injurious  to  broom-corn,  millet,  and  various  grasses.  On  corn,  when 
abundant,  it  does  conspicuous  injury,  making  minute  holes,  elongate 
slits,  and  white  streaks  on  the  leaf.  We  have  seen  it  very  abundant  on 
coarse  grasses  on  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  River  opposite  Elizabethtown, 
111.  It  hibernates  as  an  adult  and  eggs  have  been  obtained  from  it  by 
us  early  in  July.  Its  life  history  is  otherwise  unknown,  the  larvae  never 
having  been  recognized. 

The  beetles  were  found  most  abundant  on  broom-corn  near  Wash- 
ington, D.  C.,  during  the  last  week  in  June,  the  numbers  diminishing 
after  the  first  week  in  July.  About  the  middle  of  August  adults,  proba- 
bly of  the  new  brood,  have  been  taken  by  "us  abundantly  in  Kentucky, 
and  also  at. Metropolis,  in  southern  Illinois.  It  apparently  occurs 
throughout  the  United  States  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  it  is 
also  known  from  California,  Utah,  and  Montana. 

THE  CORN   FLEA-BEETLE. 
Chcetocntma  pulicaria  Melsh. 

A  number  of  specimens  of  this  minute  bronzed  species  were  taken 
by  us  on  sugar  beets  in  October  in  Urbana.  The  species  has  been 
known  mainly  as  a  corn  insect  in  Illinois,  where  for  several  seasons  it 
did  considerable  injury  to  the  leaves,  riddling  them  with  minute  holes, 
causing  them  to  wither,  and  noticeably  dwarfing  the  plants.  It  has  also 
been  taken  on  sorghum,  blue-grass,  wheat,  strawberry,  ragweed,  and 
horse-nettle,  and  was  found  with  the  species  preceding  injuring  broom- 
corn  at  Washington,  D.  C.  It  occurs  from  Pennsylvania  and  North 
Carolina  to  Texas  and,  Colorado,  and  seems  to  be  especially  common  in 
southern  Illinois.  It  hibernates  as  an  adult,  and  has  been  found  de- 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          467 

structive  to  corn  in  southern  Illinois  during  the  latter  half  of  May,  the 
middle  of  July,  and  on  various  dates  thereafter  up  to  the  close  of  the 
season.  Nothing  is  known  of  its  immature  stages,  but  we  have  found 
the  adult  in  winter  quarters  in  November. 

THE  SWEET-POTATO   FLEA-BEETLE. 
Chcetocnema  confinis  Cr. 

This  minute  species  has  been  found  by  us  on  sugar  beets  in  Octo- 
ber, but  makes  its  principal  attack  on  the  sweet-potato,  morning-glory, 
and  other  plants  of  the  order  Convolvulacece.  It  burrows  small  channels 
along  the  leaf  veins,  causing  the  leaves  to  turn  brown  and  die  if  the 
weather  is  unfavorable,  or,  if  the  plants  are  young,  often  killing  them 
before  they  have  fairly  started  to  grow.  It  has  been  found  by  Webster 
very  abundant  and  injurious  on  corn  and  wheat.  We  have  seen  it 
riddling  the  leaves  of  raspberries  with  small  holes,  thus  destroying  as 
much  as  twenty  per  cent,  of  the  foliage.  It  is  most  injurious  on  low 
lands  and  near  the  winter  shelters  of  the  beetles.  Nothing  is  known 
of  its  life  history  except  that  it  hibernates  as  an  adult  and  appears 
abundantly  in  May, — at  which  time  the  sexes  copulate, — and  that  it 
disappears  by  the  first  of  July  but  comes  in  again  during  the  latter  part 
of  the  month,  becoming  abundant  by  August  and  continuing  until  the 
close  of  the  season.  It  occurs  throughout  the  greater  part  or  all  of  the 
United  States. 

THE  SMARTWEED  FLEA-BEETLE. 

Systena  hudsonias  Forst. 

(PI.  VIII.,  Fig.  i.) 

This  beetle  is  bluish-black  throughout,  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch 
in  length,  and  more  elongate  than  most  of  the  small  flea-beetles,  ap- 
proximating in  form  the  cucumber  beetles  {Diabrotica).  It  occurs 
everywhere  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  has  been  found  abundant 
on  sugar  beets  in  New  York,  and  has  occasionally  been  noticed  by  us 
on  the  same  plant  at  Urbana.  No  serious  damage  has  been  noticed, 
however,  the  species  feeding  primarily  on  smartweed  and  dock,  and 
also  infesting  the  daisy,  fleabane,  plantain,  ragweed,  goldenrod, 
catnip,  Brunella  vidgaris,  and  the  wild  verbenas.  The  adults  of  this 
species  are  commonest  in  midsummer,  gradually  diminishing  in 
number,  and  wholly  disappearing  before  winter.  Although  the  life 
history  is  not  definitely  known  and  the  immature  stages  have  not  been 
identified,  the  species  is  probably  single-brooded,  the  eggs  being  laid 
in  the  fall. 


468  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AllgUSt, 

THE  RED-HEADED  FLEA-BEETLE. 

Systena  frontalis  Fabr. 

(PI.  VIII.,  Fig.  2.) 

A  somewhat  elongate  insect,  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long,  with 
a  narrow  thorax,  resembling  the  preceding  species  in  form  and  general 
appearance,  and  bluish  black  like  that,  except  that  the  head  is  pale  red- 
dish. It  has  been  reported  from  New  York  as  riddling  the  leaves  of 
garden  beets  to  an  extent  to  give  the  field  a  brownish  look.  It  has  also 
been  seen  in  moderate  numbers  on  beets  in  Illinois  and  Nebraska. 
Other  cultivated  plants  are  occasionally  infested,  unusual  injury  having 
been  reported  to  the  leaves  of  the  gooseberry,  grape,  and  pear.  It  is 
especially  a  smartweed  beetle,  but  feeds  also  on  lamb's-quarters  and  on 
one  of  the  mallows  {Hibiscus  militarist .  It  seems  to  be  most  abundant 
in  August  and  September,  but  its  life  history  is  unknown.  In  the  single 
instance  of  reported  injury  the  attack  was  arrested  by  spraying  with 
Paris  green. 

THE  PALE-STRIPED  FLEA-BEETLE. 

Systena  tceniata   Melsh. 
•      (Systena  blanda  Say. ) 

This  is  one  of  the  most  abundant  and  generally  injurious  of  the 
flea-beetles  and  infests  an  unusual  variety  of  plants,  most  of  them 

abundant  weeds.  It  is  very  destructive  in 
beet  fields  especially  when  unseasonable 
weather  prevents  an  early  and  rapid  growth 
of  the  plant.  In  1899,  for  example,  sugar- 
beet  planting  was  largely  delayed  in  Illinois 
until  the  middle  or  latter  part  of  May.  To- 
wards the  middle  of  June,  when  these  later 
plantings  were  very  small,  the  adults  of  this 
species  were  emerging  in  great  numbers  and, 
concentrating  .on  the  young  beets,  com- 
pletely destroyed  many  fields  of  this  plant, 
Fig.  39.  The  Pale-striped  Flea-  necessitating  a  second  and  sometimes  a  third 

beetle,  Systena  tceniata,  adult. 

planting.     The  beetles  commonly  do  not  eat 

quite  through  the  leaf  of  the  beet,  but  gnaw  pit-like  excavations  on  both 
surfaces  until  young  plants  if  severely  infested  blacken,  shrivel  up,  and 
disappear,  whole  fields  being  thus  laid  completely  bare.  If  the  plant 
survives,  the  epidermis  of  the  leaf  opposite  to  the  injury  dries  up  and 
breaks  away,  a  small  hole  thus  resulting.  This  injury  was  much  great- 
est, according  to  our  observation,  on  beets  following  or  adjoining  clover 
sod.  The  principal  damage  to  beets  by  this  insect  was  done  the  third 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


469 


week  in  June,  but  some  of  the  fields  replanted  June  25th  were  also  de- 
stroyed. 

This  species  occurs  throughout  the  northern  part  of  the   United 
States  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  from   southern   New   England  to 
Georgia,  and  is  also  abundant  in 
the    extreme    southwest.      It    has 
destroyed    beets    in    New    York, 
New  Jersey,   Michigan,  Indiana, 
-J^^i  Illinois,  Nebraska,  and  Colorado, 

and  has  done  serious  local  injury 
to  various  other  crops   including 
carrots,  corn,   fruit-grafts,  toma- 
^    --T^p.  L7-  toes,    clover,    potatoes,    melons, 

beans,  strawberries,  blackberries, 
Irj— -  alfalfa,  lettuce,  parsnip,  egg-plant, 

summer    savory,    sweet-potatoes, 

-4  "•      i£- clover, and  the  cotton  plant.  Lint- 

ner  records  it  as  an  oak  insect,  and 
IL-  it  is  destructive  to  a  great  variety 

of  weeds  including  ragweed, night- 
shade, pigweed,  cocklebur,  pla*n- 
tain,  purslane,  etc. 

--S9  W$r=^  I*s  l^e   history   is  imperfectly 

known.  All  stages  of  the  insect 
have  been  found  and  described, 
but  the  number  of  generations  an- 
nually has  not  been  ascertained 
with  certainty,  and  the  stage  of 
hibernation  is  somewhat  in  doubt. 
In  our  own  extensive  collections 


Fig.  40.  The  Pale-striped 
Flea-beetle,  Systena  tieni- 
ata:  larva,  top  view, greatly 
enlarged. 


Fig.   41.      The    Pale- 
striped  Flea-beetle,  Sys- 
tena tceniata:  larva.side 
the  imagO   Of  this  insect  has  been      view,  greatly  enlarged. 

very  abundant  in  June  and  July,  especially  in  the  former  month,  and 
has  gradually  diminished  in  number  until  September,  none  appearing 
later  than  September  nor  earlier  than  June.  In  many  winter  collections 
made  for  the  purpose  of  accumulating  lists  of  hibernating  insects 
.S1.  tceniata  has  not  once  occurred.  Furthermore,  larvae  collected  by  us 
from  roots  of  corn  in  Champaign  county,  111.,  May  iyth  had  partly,  but 
not  altogether,  transformed  to  the  adult  on  the  lyth  of  June,  the  pupa 
stage  being  likewise  present  at  that  time.  Eggs  have  been  laid,  accord- 
ing to  Chittenden,  from  June  loth  to  July  8th.  We  find,  consequently, 
at  present  no  satisfactory  evidence  of  more  than  one  brood  or  of  the 
hibernation  of  the  adult.  From  the  facts  now  on  record  it  would  seem 
most  likely  that  larval  hibernation  is  the  rule;  that  the  June  and  July 
appearance  of  the  beetles  is  due  to  the  development  of  the  adult  at  that 


470 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


\_A 


season;  and  that  the  midsummer  eggs  give  origin  to  the  larvae  which 
pass  the  winter  in  the  earth.  The  food  plants  of  the  larvae  are  doubtless 
very  imperfectly  known.  Thus  far  the  larva  has  been  found  feeding 
only  upon  sprouting  kernels  of  corn  in  the  earth  and  the  roots  of  lamb's- 
quarters  {Chenopodiuni)  and  Stramonium  (Jamestown  weed).  The  facts 
stated  above  with  regard  to  the  relation  of  this  beetle  in  the  beet  field  to 
the  growth  of  clover  makes  it  seem  likely  that  the  larva  may  also  infest 
that  plant. 

The  larva  is  a  slender,  stiff,  sluggish  insect,  about  an  eighth  of  an 
inch  in  length,  yellowish  white,  and  narrowing  gradually  from  behind 
forward.  The  sutures  of  the  thorax  form  a  peculiar  X-mark,  and  the 
anal  segment  tapers  to  a  prolonged  process  with  a  crown  of  short  spines 
and  four  long  spinose  hairs  at  its  apex. 

"The  egg  is  elliptical  but  somewhat  inconstant  in  outline,  about 
two  and  a  half  times  as  long  as  wide,  and  opaque,  light  buff  yellow  in 
color.  The  sculpture  of  the  surface,  as  observed  under  a  moderately 
high  power  of  microscope,  appears  to  be  granulated,  but  under  a  higher 
lens  it  seems  to  be  divided  into  very  minute  and  rather  ill-defined  shal- 
low concave  hexagonal  areas  arranged  in  sevens  inclosed  in  hexagons. 

Length,  0.60  to  0.68  mm.;  width,  0.25  to  0.27  mm."* 

• 

Longitarsus  melanurus  Melsh. 

These  minute  brownish  elongate 
flea-beetles,  only  about  a  twelfth  of  an 
inch  in  length,  were  found  in  small 
number  on  sugar  beets  in  Urbana  in 
October.  Davis  reports  it  as  the  com- 
monest of  the  celery  flea-beetles.  It 
occurs  from  the  Dakotas  and  Canada 
south  to  Kansas,  Missouri,  and  North 
Carolina.  It  hibernates  as  an  adult, 
and  has  been  taken  by  us  in  that  stage 
from  winter  quarters  November  i5th 
and  March  2d.  It  has  been  most 
abundant  with  us,  however,  in  May, 
The  immature  stages  and  life  history  are  unknown. 


Fig.  42.     Longitarsus  tnelanurus.     (Davis) 


June,  and  July. 


Glyptina  brunnea  Horn. 

(PI.  VII.,  Fig.  2.) 

This  minute  brown  species,  slightly  shorter  than  the  preceding,  was 
found  on  sugar  beets  in  Illinois  in  July  and  October,  quite  abundantly 
in  the  latter  month.  Its  known  range  includes  Georgia,  Louisiana,  and 
Texas,  Illinois,  and  Wisconsin.  Its  life  history  is  unknown. 


*Chittenden,  in  Bull.  No.  23,  N.  S..  U.  S.  Dcpt.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent,  p.  24. 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


471 


THE  CABBAGE  FLEA-BEETLE. 
Phyllotreta   vittata  Fabr. 

This  minute  insect,  from  a  tenth  to  a  twelfth  of  an  inch  in  length, 
black  with  two  longitudinal  yellowish  stripes — narrower  in  the  middle 

and  sometimes  broken  into  four  yellow 
spots,  is  a  destructive  enemy  to  crucif- 
erous plants,  especially  to  cabbage, 
turnips,  and  radishes.  The  worst  in- 
jury is  done  by  the  larvae,  which  live 
upon  the  roots,  but  the  leaves  are  often 
very  badly  pitted  or  riddled  by  the 
beetles.  Beets  are  not  injured,  so  far 
as  known,  by  this  beetle  to  any  serious 
extent,  although  the  adults  occur  upon 
them  occasionally  in  considerable  num- 
bers. The  species  hibernates  as  an 
imago,  occurring  in  our  collections  in 
November,  December,  and  March. 
Plants  are  likely  to  be  injured  by  them 
in  the  latter  part  of  May;  larvae  are  produced  late  in  May  and  June; 
and  beetles  are  developed  from  these  in  the  latter  part  of  August.  The 
species  is  doubtless  single-brooded,  at  least  in  central  Illinois. 


Fig.  43.  The  Cabbage  Flea-beetle,  Phyllo- 
trtta  •vittata:  a,  larva;  b,  adult.  (Riley,  U. 
S.  Dept  of  Agriculture). 


Phyllotreta  decipiens  Horn. 

This  is  an  insect  of  the  far  West,  inhabiting  Washington  and  Ore- 
gon, and  reported  injurious  to  beets,  radishes,  turnips,  potatoes,  etc., 
in  the  latter  state.  It  has  the  general  appearance  of  P.  vittata,  except 
that  its  black  color  is  varied  only  by  a  short  indistinct  yellowish  line 
on  each  wing-cover,  this,  indeed,  being  sometimes  wanting. 


THE  WESTERN  CABBAGE  FLEA-BEETLE. 
Phyllotreta  albionica  Lee. 

This  species  is  common  in  Colorado,  occupying 
there  the  place  of  P.  vittata  in  the  Eastern  States. 
The  adults  are  very  small, — only  about  a  fifteenth 
of  an  inch  in  length, — black  above,  with  a  brassy 
luster,  and  without  longitudinal  stripes.  They  are 
reported  by  Bruner  as  injuring  sugar  beets  in  Ne- 
braska; and  by  Gillette  as  infesting  cauliflower  and 

Fig.   44.      The   Western 

Cabbage  Flea-beetle,   other  cruciferous  plants  and  the  bee-plant  (Cleome 
Phyllotreta  albionica.   integrifolid).     The   immature  stages  and  life  history 

(Riley,    U.    S.    Dept.    of 

Agriculture.)  are  unknown. 


472  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AllgUSt, 

THE  RHUBARB  FLEA-BEETLE. 
Psylliodes  punctulata  Melsh. 

This  and  the  following  species  are  about  a  twelfth  of  an  inch  in 
length,  of  a  bronzy  luster,  elongate-oval  in  form,  and  readily  recognized 
by  the  curious  mode  of  attachment  of  the  hind  tarsi.  P.  punctulata 
attacks  beet,  cucumber,  and  radish  leaves.  We  have  noticed  it  several 
times  on  sugar  beets-in  Illinois,  but  never  in  numbers  to  be  seriously 
injurious.  Its  favorite  food  is  apparently  the  rhubarb  leaf,  in  which  it 
burrows  small  superficial  pits  about  a  tenth  of  an  inch  in  diameter.  It 
is  apparently  single-brooded,  the  hibernating  beetles  appearing  in  May 
and  disappearing  in  June.  The  larvae  are  said  to  bore  the  stems  of 
succulent  plants,  but  their  depredations  have  attracted  na  special  atten- 
tion. This  species  ranges  from  Canada  to  New  Jersey,  and  westward 
to  the  Pacific  coast. 

Psylliodes  convexior  Lee. 

The  range  of  this  species  is  more  southerly  than  that  of  the  preced- 
ing, extending  from  the  Pacific  coast  to  Florida  and  the  District  of 
Columbia.  Like  P.  punctulata  it  is  somewhat  elongate-oval,  about  a 
twelfth  of  an  inch  in  length,  with  a  bronzy  luster,  but  broader  and  more 
convex  than  the  preceding  species.  The  beetles  are  said  to  be  very 
abundant  and  injurious  to  beets  in  parts  of  Nebraska.  They  are  re- 
corded as  injuring  corn  in  Indiana,  eating  pits  in  the  leaves  and  not 
perforating  them,  and  also  as  feeding  on  panic-grass. 

THE  EUROPEAN  BEET-TORTOISE-BEETLE. 
Cassida  nebulosa   Linn. 

This  is  a  European  beet  insect  of  considerable  importance  which 
has  lately  made  its  appearance  in  California  as  an  entomological  rarity, 
If  it  should  maintain  itself  in  this  country  it  is  likely  to  require  the  at- 
tention of  beet  growers,  who  should  consequently  be  forewarned  against 
it.  Its  principal  European  food  is  lamb's-quarters  (Chenopodium  albuni) 
and  other  plants  of  the  Chenopodium  family,  but  in  the  absence  of  these 
it  turns  its  attentions  to  beets,  sometimes  devastating  large  areas  by  eat- 
ing out  the  parenchyma  of  the  leaf,  leaving  only  the  principal  veins. 
In  this  country  it  is  said  to  feed  on  morning-glories,  sweet-potatoes, 
and  Irish  potatoes. 

This  species  hibernates  as  an  imago,  and  lays  its  eggs,  in  groups  of 
several,  in  large  numbers  on  the  under  side  of  the  leaves.  The  larvae, — 
which  feed  in  groups  of  three  or  four  on  the  under  side  of  the  leaves, 
riddling  them  with  small  holes, — are  oval,  flat,  and  spinose,  light  green 
with  white  markings,  and  with  two  long  tails  turned  over  the  back  and 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


473 


supporting  a  protecting  shield  composed  of  cast  skins  and  excrement. 
The  pupa  is  similar  .in  appearance,  but  lacks  the  elongate  tails,  and  is 
attached  to  the  under  side  of  the  leaf.  The  beetles  are  turtle-shape, 
pale  rusty  brown  with  dark  mottlings.  They  feed  on  the  upper  side  of 
the  leaves,  gnawing  the  surface  but  not  eating  through  the  leaf.  There 
are  two  broods  of  beetles  in  a  year,  one  appearing  in  August  and  the 
other  in  the  fall.  This  beetle  is  little  likely  to  injure  beets  if  its  usual 
food  plants  are  suppressed  in  the  field. 


THE  GRAPE-VINE  COLASPIS. 

Colaspis  brunnea  Fabr. 

(PI.  IX.,  Fig.  i.) 

This  common  beetle,  ranging  from  Nebraska  to  the  Atlantic  States 
and  Canada,  has  frequently  been  taken  on  the  sugar  beet  in  Nebraska 
and  Illinois.  It  is  a  very  general  feeder  in  the  beetle  stage,  injuring 
grape,  strawberry,  beans,  buckwheat,  corn-silk,  clover,  willow  blossoms, 
and  the  leaves  and  blossoms  of  many  other  plants.  It  is  said  to  begin 
its  injury  by  making  a  small  round  hole,  which  it  enlarges  until,  perhaps, 
the  entire  leaf  is  eaten.  The  larva  —  a  whitish  cylindrical  grub  an  eighth 
of  an  inch  in  length  and  with  a  yellowish  brown  head  —  has  been  found 
feeding  upon  the  roots  of  timothy  and  Indian  corn  in  central  Illinois, 
and  is  also  widely  known  as  a  strawberry  root-worm.  It  appears  to  be 
primarily  a  grass-root  insect  in  the  larval  stage,  attacking  other  crops 
when  these  are  substituted  for  grass  on  infested  land.  It  lives  as  a 
beetle  during  the  summer  months,  ranging  in  our  collections  from  June 
22d  to  September  i4th,  but  being  most 
abundant  in  July  and  August.  We  have  not 
found  it  at  all  in  winter  even  in  strawberry 
beds  where  it  had  been  previously  abundant. 
The  eggs  are  doubtless  laid  in  summer  and 
fall,  and  the  time  at  which  injury  to  corn 
begins  indicates  the  presence  of  the  larvae  in 
the  ground  quite  early  in  May.  The  species 
is  evidently  single-brooded,  and  probably 
hibernates  as  a  larva  partly  grown. 

THE  SOUTHERN  CORN  ROOT  WORM. 
Diabrotica  12-punctata  Oliv. 

This  notorious  pest  includes  the  sugar 
beet  in  its  large  dietary,  which  contains  also 
leaves,  silk  and  pollen,  and  unripe  kernels  of 


corn;  unripe  grains  of  wheat;  petals  of  various 


Fig.  45.   The  Southern  Com  Root 
Worm'  DMrotica  "-*•*«**".  ^uit. 


474 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


garden  flowers;  the  leaves  of  small  grain,  fruit-trees,  garden  vegetables, 
and  of  some  weeds;  and,  lastly,  certain  molds.  The  beetles  are  common 
on  sugar  beets  throughout  the  season,  and  have  frequently  been  found 
gnawing  away  the  surface  or  making  irregular  holes  in  beet  leaves  in 
Illinois,  Nebraska,  and  Oregon.  The  larvae  are  subterranean,  living  on 
the  roots  of  corn,  but  especially  also  on  those  of  coarse  sedges  of  the 
genera  Scirpus  and  Cyperus. 

The  life  history  of  this  insect  is  in  confusion.  The  beetle  appears  in 
early  spring,  increases  in  apparent  numbers  with  the  advancing  season, 
becoming  most  abundant  in  August,  and  continues  in  gradually  diminish- 
ing numbers  until  October  or  November.  The  data,  published  and  un- 
published, in  our  possession,  are  insufficient  to  separate  the  succession 
into  distinct  broods. 


THE  STRIPED  CUCUMBER  BEETLE. 
Diabrotica  vittata  Fabr. 

This  well-known  melon  and  cucumber  pest  feeds  when  in  the  beetle 
stage  on  a  large  variety  of  plants,  among  which,  according  to  observa- 
tions made  in  the  beet  fields  of  Nebraska  and  Oregon,  the  sugar  beet  is 


Fig.  46.  The  Striped  Cucumber  Beetle,  Diabrotica 
vittata:  a,  adult;  b,  larva;  c,  pupa;  d,  last  segment  of 
larva.  (Chittenden,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


Fig.  47.  The  Striped  Cucumber  Beetle, 
Diabrotica  •uittata;  a,  top  view  of  head 
and  prothorax  of  larva;  b,  leg  of  same. 
(Chittenden,  U.  S.  Dept  of  Agriculture.) 


to  be  included.  It  is,  like  the  preceding  species,  subterranean  as  a 
larva,  feeding  in  that  stage  upon  the  roots  of  cucumbers,  squashes, 
melons,  and  other  plants  of  the  cucumber  family.  The  adults  feed  not 
only  on  these  plants  but  also  on  beans,  peas,  and  ripe  apples;  on  the 
leaves,  silk,  pollen,  and  unripe  kernels  of  corn;  on  the  blossoms  of 
fruit-,  and  other,  trees;  and  on  the  sunflower,  the  goldenrod,  and  other 
Composite.  We  have  found  them  eating  the  blossoms  and  riddling  the 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


475 


leaves  of  the  horse-chestnut  in  early  spring.  The  species  winters  in  the 
beetle  stage,  coming  out  from  its  hibernation  quarters  in  April  or  May, 
and  attacking  its  favorite  food  plants  even  before 
they  appear  above  ground.  The  beetles  of  the 
following  brood  begin  to  appear  about  the  second 
week  of  July  and  continue  abundant  until  October. 
The  details  of  the  life  history  are  not  clearly 
known  and  the  number  of  generations  annually 
has  not  been  definitely  determined. 


Fig.  48.  The  Striped  Cu- 
cumber Beetle,  Diabrotica 
vittata:  a,  egg;  6,  portion  of 
its  surface  greatly  enlarged. 
(Chittenden,  U.  S.  Dept.  of 
Agriculture.) 


THE  NORTHERN  CORN  ROOT  WORM. 
Diabrotica  longicornis  Say. 

The  grass-green  adult  beetle  of  this  species  is  more  or  less  abundant 
according  to  the  kind  of  agriculture  prevalent,  as  it  bre'eds,  so  far  as 
known,  only  in  fields  of  Indian 
corn,  and  becomes  numerous  \. 
there  only  where  the  same  land  is  *=^cn=^=c^ 

planted  to  corn  for  several  suc- 
cessive years.  It  is  abroad  as  a 
beetle  during  the  late  summer 
and  fall,  and  dies  before  winter, 
leaving  eggs  in  the  corn  field  to 
hatch  the  following  spring.  It 
lives  upon  a  considerable  variety 
of  the  softer  and  more  succulent 
vegetable  tissues  of  the  latter  part 
of  the  season.  Although  it  has 
never  been  known  to  eat  beet 
leaves  it  is  frequently  seen  upon 

them,  especially  in  the  vicinity  Of 

corn  fields,  and  the  fact  that  in 
Nebraska  it  has  sometimes  riddled  the  leaves  of  radishes  and  turnips 
makes  it  seem  likely  that  a  closer  observation  of  it  in  the  beet^field 
would  show  an  occasional  similar  injury  there. 


Fig.  49. 

*ratfc*  lon 


The  Northern  Corn  Root  Worm,   Dia- 

or""-  adult- 


THE  FRENCH  BUGS. 
Monoxia  puncticollis  Say. 
Monoxia  consputa  Lee.    (J/.  guttulata  Lee.). 

Monoxia  puncticollis  has  seriously  injured  the  beet  crop  in  New 
Mexico.  It  inhabits  seacoasts  and  inland  salty  places,  occurring.  along 
the  Atlantic  coast,  in  Texas,  and  in  California,  and  inland  in  the  south- 
western United  States  as  far  as  Colorado.  The  larva  feeds  on  the  sea- 


476  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  \August, 

blite  {Suada  linearis).  A  New  Mexico  correspondent  of  the  U.  S.  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  Division  of  Entomology,  *  says  the  beetles  lay 
their  eggs  on  the  under  side  of  the  sugar  beet,  these  hatching  in  about 
six  days.  The  larvse  feed  on  the  beet  leaf.  Hundreds  occurred  on  a 
single  plant,  causing  it  to  shrivel  and  die.  After  about  nine  or  ten 
days,  they  enter  the  earth,  change  to  pupae,  and  a  few  days  later  the 
beetles  appear. 

Monoxia  consputa  injures  sugar  beets  to  a  serious  extent  in  the 
West.  It  ranges  from  Arizona  and  California  northward  to  the  Dakotas 
and  the  northwestern  United  States.  It  is  quite  common  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  and  seems  to  be  the  most  troublesome  beet  pest  in  Oregon. 
These  beetles  eat  small  holes  in  the  leaf,  sometimes  leaving  only  a  net- 
work of  veins,  checking  the  growth  of  the  beet  plants,  or  killing  them 
entirely.  An  application  that  was  successful  in  killing  these  and  other 
leaf-feeding  insects  was  composed  of  half  a  pound  of  Paris  green  and 
three  pounds  of  whale-oil  soap  in  fifty  gallons  of  water.  The  whale-oil 
soap  was  probably  necessary  to  make  the  spray  adhere  to  the  plants. 

GR  A  SSHOPPERS. 

Acrididce.  and  Locustidce. 

Notwithstanding  the  abundance  of  grasshoppers  everywhere  in  beet 
fields,  and  the  considerable  list  of  species  occurring  there,  their  injuries 
to  beets  are  not  usually  serious  but  are  mainly  confined  to  fields  adjacent 
to  grass  lands  in  which  grasshoppers  have  bred  in  extraordinary  num- 
bers. An  instance  of  injury  under  these  conditions  came  to  our  notice 
in  July,  1899.  One  of  the  fields  of  the  Illinois  Sugar  Refining  Company, 
near  Pekin,  111.,  was  considerably  injured  at  this  time  by  the  common 
red-legged  grasshopper  {Pezotettix  femur-rubrum — Fig.  55),  which  ate 
large  irregular  holes  in  the  leaves,  or  cut  broad  deep  notches  out  of 
their  edges,  leaving  only  the  larger  veins  to  hold  the  leaves  together. 

The  two  families  commonly  confused  under  the  general  name  of 
"grasshopper"  may  be  easily  distinguished  by  their  antennae.  Those  of 
the  meadow  grasshopper  {Locustidce)  are  many-jointed,  slender,  and 
much  longer  than  the  body  (Fig.  57,  59)  and  those  of  the  Acrididcz 
(often  called  locusts  by  entomologists)  are  much  shorter  than  the  body 
and  comparatively  thick  (Fig.  50 — 56).  The  female  of  the  Locustida 
(Fig.  57)  has  projecting  backward  from  the  tip  of  the  abdomen  a  com- 
pressed sword-shaped  organ  which  is  used  for  placing  the  egg  in  or 
about  plants,  while  the  female  of  the  Acrididcz  has  at  the  end  of  the 
abdomen  four  stout  blunt  structures  with  curved  tips  which,  brought 
together  on  the  middle  line,  form  a  thick  conical  tip  to  the  body,  used 
in  forcing  the  abdomen  into  the  earth  for  the  deposit  of  the  egg  mass. 

*Bull.  No.  18,  N.  S.,  p.  95. 


1900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.  477 

The  young  of  both  families  differ  from  adults  principally  in  the  absence 
of  developed  wings. 

A  few  of  our  grasshoppers  hatch  in  fall  and  become  full  grown  in 
spring.  Most  of  them,  including  all  those  really  injurious  to  beets,  pass 
the  winter  in  the  egg,  and,  hatching  in  the  spring,  undergo  their  succes- 
sive molts  during  the  summer,  and  reach  the  winged  stage  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  summer  and  early  fall.  Most  of  these  summer  species  con- 
tinue to  feed  until  cold  weather  closes  their  career. 

As  a  general  rule,  whenever  grasshoppers  are  destructively  abun- 
dant one  year  they  are  present  for  some  years  following  in  insignificant 
numbers  only,  a  fact  explained  by  the  numbers  and  powers  of  reproduc- 
tion of  their  parasites  and  other  enemies.  Late  in  the  season  adults  are 
often  seen  with  small,  bright  red,  egg-like  bodies  attached  at  the  bases 
of  the  wings,  and  sometimes  elsewhere  on  the  body.  These  are  para- 
sitic mites,  which,  like  ticks,  suck  the  blood  of  their  insect  host  in  the 
fall,  and,  in  the  following  spring,  after  undergoing  a  striking  metamor- 
phosis, devour  the  egg  masses  of  the  grasshoppers  in  the  ground.  Long 
thread-like,  milk-white  hairworms  (Mermis}  are  often  found  in  the  abdo- 
mens of  grasshoppers,  living  there  as  internal  parasites,  and  escaping 
after  maturity  to  enter  the  earth,  where  they  pass  the  winter,  pair,  and 
produce  myriads  of  eggs  the  following  spring.  The  young  from  these 
infest  the  grasshoppers  of  the  year  and  assist  greatly  in  the  reduction 
of  any  excess  of  numbers.  Larvse  of  a  Tachina  fly  often  occur  within 
the  body  when  grasshoppers  are  very  numerous,  and  every  specimen  so 
infested  perishes  before  reproducing.  Deadly  fungus  parasites  also  infest 
and  kill  them,  and  larvse  of  the  common  blister-beetles  devour  their 
eggs  in  the  earth. 

If  injuries  by  grasshoppers  reach  a  stage  or  threaten  a  result 
which  calls  for  treatment  in  the  beet  field  their  numbers  may  best  be 
reduced  by  poisons  mixed  with  bran  mash.  For  this  purpose  stir  thor- 
oughly five  pounds  of  arsenic  into  half  a  barrel  of  bran  (or  in  this  ratio 
for  smaller  quantities),  dissolve  in  a  pail  of  water  an  amount  of  sugar 
equal  in  weight  to  the  arsenic,  and  stir  the  sweetened  water  into  the 
bran,  adding  more  water,  as  necessary,  until  a  good  mash  is  made. 
This  should  then  be  distributed  in  handfuls  to  the  part  of  the  field  in- 
fested by  grasshoppers,  which  will  prefer  it  to  the  beet  itself,  for  which, 
indeed,  they  have  no  very  eager  appetite.  Injuries  by  invasion  from 
without  should,  however,  be  prevented  when  practicable  by  watching 
adjacent  grass  lands,  and,  if  grasshoppers  appear  on  them  in  unusual 
numbers,  by  using  the  so-called  "  hopperdozer "  for  their  destruction, 
according  to  methods  frequently  published  and  generally  well  known. 
Spring  plowing  of  grass-lands  and  their  subsequent  treatment  with  the 
disc  harrow  will  effectually  destroy  the  eggs  in  the  earth. 

The  common    short-horned    grasshoppers    {Acridid(z)    are   thicker 


478  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  [August, 

and  heavier,  and  are  armed  with  a  thicker  crust  than  the  Locustidce,  or 
slender-horned  group.  The  former  are  usually  neutral  blackish  brown 
or  gray  in  general  color.  Some  of  them  have  pointed  foreheads,  the 
face  slanting  downwards  and  backwards.  The  yellow  grasshopper 
{Stenobotftrus  curtipennis^)  is  an  example  of  this  form  (Fig.  50).  The 
others  have  rounded  foreheads,  with  the  faces  nearly  vertical.  Among 
these  are  two  well-marked  groups.  In  one  there  is  a  distinct  slender 
conical  spine  midway  between  the  fore-legs  on  the  under  side;  in  the 
other  there  is  little  or  no  trace  of  this  spine.  The  black-winged  grass- 
hopper {Dissosteira  Carolina,  Fig.  51),  known  by  its  black  under  wings 
broadly  bordered  with  yellowish,  is  the  only  one  of  the  group  without 
the  spine  which  we  have  noticed  frequently  in  Illinois  beet  fields.  There 
are  other  common  Illinois  species  of  this  group,  however,  which  may 
yet  be  found  to  feed  on  beets. 

Of  the  remaining  genera,  those  possessing  the  prothoracic  spine, 
only  Schistocerca,  Campylacantha,  and  Melanoplus  have  been  reported 
from  beet  fields.  Schist ocerca  contains  very  large  species,  some  of 
which  are  common  in  central  and  southern  Illinois,  but  th,e  species 
(S.  alutacea — Fig  52)  known  to  be  injurious  to  the  beet  is  not  often 
seen  in  Illinois.  It  is  a  brownish  yellow  species  with  a  pale  stripe  down 
the  middle  of  the  back,  usually  much  blotched  with  red  on  the  fore 
wings  and  abdomen,  and  with  a  closely  placed  row  of  red  or  blackish 
points  along  the  hinder  edge  of  each  abdominal  segment,  above.  Cam- 
pylacantha  olivacea,  a  species  with  rudimentary  wings,  is  found  from 
Nebraska  to  Texas.  The  genus  Melanoplus  contains  our  commonest 
grasshoppers.  There  are  five  well  known  species  on  our  list  of  those 
infesting  the  beet,  two  larger  ones  (bivittatus  and  differ  entialis},  about  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  through  at  the  base  of  the  fore  wings, — which  latter 
are  not  evidently  dotted  with  small  spots, — and  three  smaller  ones,  about 
an  eighth  of  an  inch  thick,  with  the  fore  wings  sprinkled  with  reddish 
or  blackish  dots,  at  least  along  the  middle.  The  two-striped  grasshop- 
per {Melanoplus  bivittatus — Fig.  54)  has  a  yellowish  line  on  each  side 
of  the  back  along  the  angle  between  the  upper  and  lateral  surfaces  when 
the  wings  are  closed.  The  olive  grasshopper  (J/.  differential — Fig.  53), 
a  very  common  Illinois  species,  is  a  heavy  species  of  a  nearly  uniform 
dark  olive  color.  Melanoplus  femur-rubrum  (Fig.  55),  the  abundant 
"red-legged  grasshopper"  of  the  beet  fields,  and  everywhere  else  in 
Illinois,  has  the  shortest  wings  of  the  three  smaller  species,  these  reach- 
ing when  closed  little  beyond  the  tip  of  the  body;  and  if  the  tip  of  the 
male  abdomen  be  carefully  viewed  from  behind,  it  will  show  a  nearly 
straight  upper  edge.  In  the  other  two  small  species,  the  closed  wings 
reach  considerably  beyond  the  tip  of  the  body,  and  the  tip  of  the  male 
abdomen  is  distinctly  notched  above.  One  of  these  is  M.  spretus 
(Fig.  56),  the  Rocky  Mountain  grasshopper,  which  has  never  invaded 


IpOO.J  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF   THE    SUGAR    BEET.  479 

Illinois;  the  other  is  a  moderately  common  Illinois  species,  M.  atlanis. 
The  meadow  grasshoppers  are  distinguished  from  the  other  long- 
horned  green  grasshoppers  comprising  the  family  Locustidce  by  the  point 
of  the  forehead  ending  in  a  narrow  but  very  blunt  and  somewhat  wart- 
like  protuberance  between  the  bases  of  the  antennae.  They  belong  to 
two  genera,  Orchelimum  and  Xiphidium,  corresponding  somewhat  in 
size  and  variety  to  the  two  groups  of  larger  and  smaller  species  of  the 
genus  Melanoplus.  These  also  have  a  spine  between  the  bases  of  the 
fore  legs.  In  Orchelimum,  this  is  quite  short  and  the  sword-shaped  ovi- 
positor of  the  female  is  rather  broad  and  noticeably  curved  (Fig.  57). 
In  the  smaller  species,  those  belonging  to  Xiphidium,  the  spine  is  long 
and  slender,  and  the  ovipositor  is  straight  or  very  little  curved.  The 
two  species  of  Xiphidium  on  our  list  are  short  winged.  They  may  be 
separated  as  follows:  In  X.  femorale  the  wings  cover  about  half  the 
length  of  the  abdomen  in  the  female,  and  two-thirds  of  it  in  the  male;  the 
ovipositor  is  much  shorter  than  the  body  and  a  little  curved  throughout; 
and  the  terminal  points  of  the  male  abdomen  are  straight  and  usually 
parallel.  X.  strictum  has  very  short  wings,  less  than  half  the  length  of 
the  abdomen,  while  the  ovipositor  is  very  long,  exceeding  the  length  of 
the  body.  The  terminal  points  of  the  male  curve  slightly  inwards. 

THE  YELLOW  GRASSHOPPER. 
Stenobothrus  curtipennis  Harr. 

This  trim  little  species,  yellowish  olive  above  and 
yellow  beneath,  has  short  narrow  wings  and  yellowish 
hind  legs  with  black  knees.  It  is  quite  common 
throughout  Illinois  and  has  been  reported  among  the 
more  numerous  species  on  sugar  beets  in  Iowa.  Al- 
though wintering  as  an  egg,  it  matures  at  an  unusually 
early  date  the  following  year,  adults  having  been  taken 
as  early  as  June  23d.  It  becomes  common  in  July,  and 
continues  until  October. 

THE  BLACK-WINGED  GRASSHOPPER, 
Dissosteira  Carolina  Linn. 

This  is  a  rather  large  species,  very  common  through- 
out Illinois,  found  by  Bruner  eating  leaves  of  the  sugar 
beet  in  July.  Its  mottled  brown  color,  varying  to  yel- 

,         .    ,  tl_  .,        ,  Fig.  50.    The  Yellow 

lowish  or  gray,  often  with  obscure  cross  bands  on  the   Grasshopper,  steno- 


wings,  makes  it  inconspicuous  when  at  rest,  but  it  is   6o'Aru*    curtipennis. 

distinguishable  at  once  in  flight  by  its  black  hind  wings 

strongly  bordered   with  yellow.      The  median  dorsal   ridge  extending 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


\A  UgUSty 


Fig.  51.    The  Black-winged  Grasshopper,  Dissosteira 
Carolina.     (Lugger.) 


backward  from  the  head  is  dis- 
tinct and  sharp,  while  in  our 
other  common  species  from 
the  beet  there  is  little  trace  of 
such  a  ridge. 

This  grasshopper  matures 
early,  having  been  taken  from 
June  25th  until  fall.  It  pairs 
early  in  August  and  deposits 
eggs  in  August  and  September. 

Trimerotropis  latifasciata 
Scudd. 

This  species  has  been  sev- 
eral times  reported  as  injurious 
to  the  sugar  beet  in  western 
Nebraska,  but  is  not  found  in 
Illinois. 


Spharagemon  tzquale  Scudd. 

This  is  a  widespread  insect  in  Nebraska,  where  it  is  reported  as 
feeding  upon  the  sugar  beet,  but  not  in  numbers  to  make  it  especially 
injurious.  It  is  not  known  to  occur  in  Illinois. 

Schistocerca  alutacea  Harr. 

{Acridium  aiutaceum  Harr.,  and  A.  emarginatum  Uhl.) 
This  species  is  generally  rare  in 
Illinois,  becoming  more  common 
westward.  It  is  mentioned  by  Os- 
born  among  the  grasshoppers  most 
numerous  on  sugar  beets  in  Iowa. 
It  is  found  from  July  to  October. 

THE  LUBBER  GRASSHOPPER. 
Melanoplus  differentialis  Thos. 

This  is  a  very  common  and 
widely  distributed  grasshopper,  its 
normal  range  extending  from  the 
Pacific  to  Indiana,  and  south  to 
Mexico.  Its  uniform  dark  olive 
color  and  large  size,  taken  in  con- 
nection with  its  distinctive  features 
mentioned  above,  will  readily  serve 
to  identify  it.  Next  to  the  red- 
legged  species  it  is  our  most  injuri-  Fig.  52.  Schiftocerca  alutacea.  (Lugger.) 


ipoo.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


481 


ous  grasshopper.  It  lays  its  eggs  in  damp  shady  ground  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  afternoon.  As  many  as  one  hundred  and  seventy-one 
eggs  have  been  count- 
ed in  a  single  mass. 
Sometimes  only  one 
such  cluster  is  laid  by 
a  single  female,  but 
two  or  even  three  may 

be  deDOSited    at    inter-  Fig.  53.     The  Lubber  Grasshopper,  Melanoplus  differ  entialis. 

vals.     The  adult  stage  is  reached  about  the  first  of  August,  and  the  eggs 
are  laid  from  the  middle  of  August  to  October. 

THE  TWO-STRIPED  GRASSHOPPER. 
Melanophis  bivittatus  Say. 

This  species, common  in  Illinois,is  confined  mainly  to  the  Mississippi 

Valley,  not  occurring  on  the 
Atlantic  or  Pacific  slopes  or  in 
the  extreme  northwest.  It 
may  be  recognized  at  once 
by  the  yellowish  dorsal  stripes 
on  each  side  of  the  middle, 
along  the  angle  between  the 

Fig.  54,     The  Two-striped  Grasshopper.  Melanoplus        ,         ,  ,      .,         ,     ,  attarkerl 

bivittatus.     (Riley.  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.)  3e-    U  "aS  atlaCK 

beets  in  low  grounds  or  Reside 

rank  growths  of  grass  or  clover,  but  has  never  been  seriously  injurious 
to  that  crop. 

The  eggs  are  placed  in  any  compact  soil,  such  as  old  roads,  closely- 
cropped  pastures,  and  prairie  sod.  Adults  usually  begin  to  appear 
about  July  ist.  Eggs  are  apparently  laid  in  September,  and  have  been 
observed  to  hatch  in  March. 

THE  COMMON  RED-LEGGED  GRASSHOPPER. 
Melanoplus  fettytr-rubrum    DeG. 

This  is  the  commonest  'Illinois  grasshopper,  and  the  most  abundant 
of  its  kind  in  fields  of  beets.  It  closely  resembles  the  western  destructive 
grasshopper  (Melanoplus  spretus},  and 
also  another  species  of  the  genus 
(atlanis*)  which  occurs  in  Illinois  but 
which  is  much  less  generally  known 
than  the  other  two.  The  native  home 

t  ,-,         ,  ..  Fig.  55.     The  Common  Red-legged  Grass- 

of  the  destructive  western  grasshopper,      hopper>  Mtia«.piu,ftm*r-r»brum. 

or    Rocky    Mountain    locust,    is    the 

mountain  country  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  system;  atlanis  breeds  mainly 


482 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


in  the  lesser  mountains  and  hills  of  the  eastern  part  of  the  country; 
while  the  present  species  prefers  relatively  low  and  level  territory,  being 
also  most  at  home  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  United  States.  The  destruc- 
tive spretus  never  reaches  Illinois;  the  long-winged  atlanis  is  common 
in  the  hilly  region  of  the  southern  end  of  this  state;  while  the  shorter- 
winged,  red-legged  species  is  abundant  everywhere.  It  does  not  tend  io 
migrate  in  large  swarms  like  both  the  others,  although  when  very  abun- 
dant locally,  nights  to  short  distances  are  sometimes  made  in  numbers 
to  suggest  the  flying  swarms  of  the  western  locust.  A  single  female  red- 
legged  grasshopper  may  lay  approximately  one  hundred  eggs  in  three  or 
four  separate  masses,  deposited  in  the  ground  usually  in  grass-lands  and 
in  the  firmer  parts  of  fields,  such  as  paths  and  roadways  and  trampled 
spots  in  pastures. 

This  species  is  single-brooded.  Most  of  the  eggs  hatch  in  May, 
and  the  young  feed  and  grow  through  June  and  July,  getting  wings  about 
seventy  days  after  hatching.  Occasional  adults  may  appear  as  early  as 
the  latter  part  of  June,  but  the  great  part  of  the  generation  matures  in 
August,  and  from  this  time  on  the  perfect  insects  are  most  abundant. 
They  continue  their  depredations  until  arrested  by  the  approach  of  winter. 

Melanoplus  atlanis  Riley. 

This  species,  inhabits  especially  the  Eastern  States,  and  seems  to 
prefer  hilly  and  wooded  country.  It  is  much  like  the  western  destruc- 
tive grasshopper  in  structure  and  habits,  and  in  its  tendency  to  migrate 
when  very  numerous.  It  is  at  times  very  destructive,  especially  in  New 
England.  It  is  common  in  the  hilly  region  of  southern  Illinois,  and  is 
taken  at  times  in  other  parts  of  the  state.  It  lays  from  two  to  four  egg 
masses  and  its  period  of  development  is  about  eighty  days.  The  adults 

are  nearly  a  month  earlier 
in  their  appearance  than 
those  of  the  red-legged 
species,  being  common- 
est in  July  and  August. 

THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAIN 
GRASSHOPPER. 


fir      Melanoplus  spretus  Thos. 

This,  the  most  de- 
structive American  spe- 
cies, is  so  thoroughly  well 

Fig.   56.      The   Rocky  Mountain    Grasshopper,    Melanoplus      known  throughout  the  TC- 
spretus:    a,  a,  a,  females  ovipositing;    b,  egg  pod  removed  from          •          •     r       ,      j  •,        •  .   .-,      .   •  . 


ground,  with  end  broken  open,  showing  eggs;    c,  eggs;    d,  e,  egg 

masses  in  the  ground;  f,  egg  mass  completed  and  covered  up.  Special    treatment  here  is 

uncalled  for,  particularly  as  it  does  not  occur  in  Illinois.. 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


483 


Campylacantha  olivacea  Scudd. 
(Pezotettix  olivaceus  Bruner.) 

This  species  ranges  from  Nebraska  to  Texas,  but  does  not  occur  in 
Illinois.  It  is  reported  as  rare  in  eastern  and  middle  Nebraska,  but  it 
is  occasionally  found  there  in  beet  fields,  and  also  feeding  on  sunflower 
{Hclianthus}  and  lamb's-quarters. 

THE  LARGER  MEADOW  GRASSHOPPER. 
Orchelimum  vulgare  Harr. 

This  is  one  of  the  long-horned  species  {Locustida),  the  commonest 
of  its  genus  in  Illinois.  By  means  of  its  sword-like  overpositor  it  lays 


Fig.  57.     The   Larger  Meadow  Grasshopper, 
Orchelimum  vulgare,  female.     (Lugger.) 


Fig.  59.     The   Larger  Meadow  Grasshopper, 
Orchelimum  vulgare,  male.     (Lugger.) 


Fig.  58.  The  Larger  Meadow  Grass- 
hopper, Orchelimum  vulgare:  eggs  in 
stem  of  corn  tassel,  with  single  egg  in 
outline. 


its  eggs  in  the  pith  of  a  great  variety  of  soft  plants,  from  one  to  several 
in  a  place  according  to  the  size  of  the*  stem.  The  clusters  are  placed  at 
intervals  of  about  an  inch  in  a  single  row  which  usually  takes  a  slightly 
spiral  direction  along  the  stem.  The  cuticle  is  torn  up  with  the  jaws 
before  the  eggs  are  inserted,  a  row  of  roughened  fibrous  spots  thus 
marking  the  location  of  the  eggs.  These  are  especially  common  in 
corn  stalks  just  below  the  tassel,  or  in  stalks  of  weeds,  elder  twigs,  and 
the  like.  They  are  usually  laid  in  the  first  half  of  September,  but  hatch 
somewhat  late  in  the  following  season.  The  young  are  most  abundant 
in  July  and  August,  and  adults  begin  to  appear  by  the  end  of  July.  This 
species  seems  to  prefer  upland  localities,  especially  fields  of  clover  and 
timothy.  It  has  been  often  seen  by  us  on  beets. 


484 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


\A  UgUSt, 


THE  SMALLER  MEADOW  GRASSHOPPERS. 
Xiphidium. 

Specimens  of  Xiphidium  nemorale  Scudd.  were  taken  on  sugar  beets 
in  Urbana  in  October,  1898,  and  those  of  X.  strictum  Scudd.  were  found 
feeding  on  beets  July  26th  and  August  ipth,  young  at  the  former  dates 
and  adults  at  the  latter. 


Fig.  60.     Clivina  impressifrons. 


OTHER  LEAF-EATING  BEETLES* 
Clivina  impressifrons  Lee. 

This  little  ground-beetle  about  a  quarter 
of  an  inch  long,  recognizable  by  the  accom- 
panying figure,  (Fig.  60),  may  receive  mere 
mention  as  a  beet  insect,  having  been  once 
seen  by  us  in  small  numbers  enlarging  a  small 
excavation  on  the  petiole  of  a  beet  leaf.  The 
same  species  had  previously  been  seen  bur- 
rowing freely  into  seed  corn  in  the  ground. 

THE  BEET  CARRION-BEETLE. 
Silpha  opaca  Linn. 

This  insect,  a  member  of  a  genus,  and 
indeed  of  a  family,  nearly  all  of  which  feed 
upon  decayed  animal  matter,  is  itself  a  vege- 
tarian, and  has  become  noted  in  Europe  as 
perhaps  the  worst  insect  pest  of  the  beet  field. 
It  was  brought  into  America  at  least  twenty 
years  ago,   but  is   still  quite   uncommon  in 
the  United  States.      It  was  re- 
ported by  Dr.  Horn  from  Cali- 
fornia   in   1880,    and    in   1891 
Prof.   Bruner  found  it  several 
times  in  the  beet  fields  of  Ne- 
braska.     In   1893  he  reported 
again  that  it  had  been  several 
times  taken  in  Nebraska  feeding 
In  England, 


upon  beet  leaves. 


Fig.  61.  The  Beet  Carrion-beetle,  Silpha  opaca: 
i,  2,  young  larvae  feeding  on  beet  leaf;  3,  4,  larvae;  5, 
adult  beetle  in  flight;  6,  adult  at  rest.  (From  publishers 
of  Curtis's  "Farm  Insects.") 


France,  and  Austria  large  num- 
bers of  the  larvae  of  this  species 
appear  in  the  early  part  of  the 
season  in  the  beet  field  eating  away  the  parenchyma  of  the  leaf,  usually 

*The  flea-beetles  and  a  few  other  beetles  doing  a  similar  injury  to  the  beet  have  already  been 
treated  on  pp.  460-476. 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  485 

at  night,  and  leaving  only  the  skeleton  of  the  veins  or  wholly  destroying 
the  young  leaves  as  fast  as  they  appear.  The  adult  insect  is  black,  with 
nearly  parallel  sides,  the  body  flat  and  thin,  about  three-fourths  of  an 
inch  in  length,  with  more  or  less  marked  parallel  ridges  on  the  wing- 
covers.  The  scaly  looking  larvae  taper  from  before  backwards  and  have 
something  the  appearance  of  the  well  known  sow-bugs  or  cellar  bugs 
{OniscidcK).  The  beetles  hibernate,  and  lay  their  eggs  in  June,  and 
these  hatch  in  about  five  days  thereafter — in  England  and  France  about 
July  ist.  The  young  mature  within  a  fortnight.  In  about  a  month 
from  the  time  the  eggs  were  deposited  the  adult  beetles  emerge. 

Silpha  bituberosa  Lee. 

This  American  species,  our  nearest  ally  to  the  beet  carrion-beetle 
of  Europe,  is  a  western  and  northern  species,  ranging  from  the  British 
Northwest  Territory  as  far  south  as  Kansas.  In  British  America  the 
larvae  were  seen  by  Mr.  Fletcher  in  1893  feeding  on  a  variety  of  weeds, 
particularly  upon  those  belonging  to  the  Chenopodium  family,  and  also 
on  squash  and  pumpkin  vines.  In  breeding-cages  they  ate  freely  of  the 
leaves  of  beet  and  lamb's-quarters,  feeding  by  night  and  hiding  by  day. 

The  larvae  are  black  and  shining,  half  to  three-quarters  of  an  inch 
long  and  a  fifth  of  an  inch  wide,  convex  above,  flattened  below,  and 
tapering  towards  each  end.  The  beetle  is  dull  black,  with  dusky  hairs 
on  the  thorax,  of  oval  outline,  broader  than  S.  opaca,  which  is  a  com- 
paratively elongate  species.  Fletcher  found  the  larvse  living  in  his  breed- 
ing-cages from  June  5th  to  July  i2th,  and  adults  emerging  from  July  6th 
to  24th.  Although  this  species  has  not  yet  been  known  to  injure  beet 
plants  in  the  field,  the  foregoing  facts  make  it  an  object  of  interest  to 
economic  entomologists  engaged  in  the  study  of  insect  injuries  to  the 
beet. 

BLISTER-BEE  TLES. 

Meloidce. 

This  family  of  insects,  readily  distinguishable  by  their  elongate- 
cylindrical  bodies,  comparatively  soft  wing-covers,  small  thorax,  and 
rounded  head  attached  to  the  thorax  by  a  comparatively  slender  neck, 
receive  their  common  name  from  the  fact  that  when  crushed  or  roughly 
handled  they  cause  a  blister  on  the  skin  due  to  an  irritant  oil  secreted 
by  the  beetle.  They  are  best  known  to  ordinary  agriculture  by  their 
injuries  to  the  tomato  and  potato,  especially  to  the  latter.  Previous  to 
the  advent  of  the  hard-shelled,  thick-bodied  Colorado  potato-beetle  these 
blister-beetles  were  the  principal  insect  enemy  of  the  potato,  and  are 
frequently  referred  to  now  as  the  "old-fashioned  potato-beetle.''  There 
are  several  American  species  of  this  family,  some  striped  with  black 


486  BULLETIN  NO.   60.  {August, 

and  yellow,  others  black  or  gray,  and  still  others  uniformly  colored  with 
metallic  blue,  green,  or  coppery.  They  move  commonly  in  companies, 
devouring  their  food  plants  as  they  go.  Their  injuries  to  vegetation 
are  confined  to  the  beetle  stage,  the  food  habits  of  the  larvae  being  very 
different  from  those  of  the  beetle.  The  young  of  some  species  are  para- 
sites on  bees  and  eat  their  eggs  and  honey,  but  most  of  them  are  bene- 
ficial as  larvae,  feeding  on  the  egg  masses  of  the  grasshoppers  buried  in 
the  ground.  They  hatch  from  eggs  laid  by  the  female  blister-beetle  in 
small  cavities  burrowed  in  the  loose  ground  among  grasshopper  eggs. 
Most  of  them  pass  the  winter  in  the  larval  stage,  coming  out  as  adult 
beetles  the  following  summer. 

In  the  beet  field  these  insects  may  either  be  poisoned  with  arsenical 
applications,  killed  by  knocking  them  off  into  water  covered  with  a  film 
of  kerosene,  or  driven  out  of  the  field  by  threshing  the  infested  plants 
with  brush  or  wisps  of  straw.  Curiously,  if  the  commonest  species  are 
subjected  to  this  last  treatment  they  are  not  likely  to  return.  On  ac- 
count of  the  beneficial  habits  of  their  larvae  it  is  best,  as  a  rule,  not  to 
destroy  the  beetles  unless  really  necessary  to  preserve  the  crop.  Indeed 
they  are  commonly  abundant  only  when  grasshoppers  have  themselves 
become  abundant  enough  to  do  considerable  harm,  the  blister-beetle 
then  largely  contributing  to  the  suppression  of  the  grasshopper  out- 
break. 

A  pound  of  Paris  green  or  London  purple  stirred  up  with  an  equal 
weight  of  lime  in  two  hundred  gallons  of  water  has  been  found  sufficient 
to  destroy  the  beetles  without  injury  to  the  leaf,  at  an  expense  for  the 
insecticide  of  only  two  cents  per  acre.  With  an  ordinary  hand  force- 
pump  working  in  a  barrel  on  a  cart,  the  cost  of  treatment  was  about  a 
dollar  an  acre,  but  with  a  specially  constructed  sprayer  carrying  a  num- 
ber of  nozzles,  one  for  each  row,  Osborn  thought  that  the  expense 
could  be  reduced  one  half. 

Megetra  vittata  is  a  black  western  species  with  very  large  exposed 
abdomen  and  a  short  pair  of  strongly  diverging  wing-covers  bearing  fine 
reddish  markings.  Macrobasis  unicolor  (Fig.  62)  is  uniform  ashy  gray, 
sometimes  darker.  The  gray  specimens  are  almost  indistinguishable  by 
the  naked  eye  from'the  less  common  Epicauta  cinerea,  and  the  dark  ones 
might  be  confused  with  E.  pennsylvanica,  but  they  differ  clearly  from 
both  of  these  in  the  larger  relative  size  of  the  second  joint  of  the  anten- 
nae. Epicauta  maculaia  (Fig.  63)  is  a  western  species,  gray,  finely  dot- 
ted with  black.  E.  vittata  (Fig.  64)  is  the  common  yellow  and  black 
striped  species,  with  either  four  or  six  black  stripes  above.  E.  cinerea 
is  uniform  gray,  distinguished  from  our  common  M.  unicolor  as  already 
stated;  E.  marginata  (Fig.  65),  common  in  Illinois,  is  black  above 
with  a  narrow  gray  edge  all  around  each  wing-cover,  except  at  base. 
E.  pennsylvanica  (Fig.  66),  very  common  in  Illinois,  is  solid  black 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


487 


throughout.     Cantharis  nuttalli  (Fig.  67)  has  brilliant  metallic  colors — 
coppery,  green,  or  blue.      Like  E.  maculata  it  is  a  western  species. 

Megetra   vittata  Lee. 

This  insect  is  reported  by  Cockerell  to  injure  sugar  beets  in  New 
Mexico  and  also  in  Arizona,  and  is  probably  in  the  larval  stage  a  bee 
parasite  and  honey  eater. 


THE  COMMON  GRAY  BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Macrobasis  unicolor  Kirby. 

This  beetle,  although  common  in  Illinois,  has  not  yet  been  found 
by  us  in  the  beet  field,  but  in  Nebraska  it  -is 
reported  as  injurious  to  the  sugar  beet.  It  in- 
habits the  entire  western  United  States  and  is 
especially  destructive  to  plants  of  the  bean 
family,  including  beans,  peas,  clover,  black 
locust,  honey-locust,  wild  indigo,  lupines,  and 
Astragalus.  It  also  seriously  damages  the 
potato  and  is  known  to  injure  tomatoes  and 
sweet-potatoes  and  to  eat  the  leaves  of  the 
cherry,  anemone,  and  chrysanthemum.  In  the 
latitude  of  central  Illinois  the  beetles  have 
been  found  from  May  ipth  to  October.  They 
are  most  abundant  about  the  middle  of  June, 
and  are  actively  injurious  for  a  month  or  more. 
Specimens  collected  June  i3th  soon  laid  their 
eggs  abundantly,  the  female  burrowing  into  the 
earth  for  this  purpose,  sometimes  as  much  as  two 
inches,  and  depositing  a  batch  of  sixty  to  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  eggs  irregularly  stuck  together. 


THE  SPOTTED  BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Epicauta  maculata  Say. 

This  abundant  western  species,  ranging  from 
New  Mexico  to  Dakota  and  west  to  California 
and  Oregon,  is  reported  as  decidedly  injurious  to 
beets  in  Kansas,  Nebraska,  and  South  Dakota. 
It  is  especially  fond  of  lamb's-quarters  and  other 
weeds  of  the  Chenopodinm  family,  and  also  feeds 
upon  the  potato,  clover,  and  greasewood. 


Fig.  62.  The  Common  Gray 
Blister-beetle,  Macrobasis  uni- 
color, adult.  (Bruner.) 


Fig.  63.  The  Spotted 
Blister-beetle,  Epicattta 
»iaculata.  (Bruner.) 


488  BULLETIN  NO.    60.  {August 

THE  STRIPED  BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Epicanta  vittata  Fabr.,  and  var.  lemniscata  Fabr.* 

This  is  the  common  striped  blister-beetle  of 
Illinois,  the  one  most  generally  known  as  a  potato 
beetle.  The  variety  may  be  distinguished  by  the 
fact  that  it  has  six  black  stripes  on  the  back 
instead  of  four.  It  is  distributed  throughout  the 
United  States  from  Florida  to  Canada,  and  west 
to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  is  a  well-known 
destroyer  of  the  potato  and  tomato,  and  feeds 
frequently  with  injurious  effect  on  leaves  of  the 
sugar  beet.  It  scatters  more  widely  in  feeding 
than  the  black  species  does,  and  is  consequently 
less  injurious  to  individual  plants  attacked.  It 
devours  also  buckwheat,  carrots,  corn,  some  of 
the  leguminous  plants,  cabbage,  the  arrowleaf 
(Sagittaria),  clematis,  and  the  common  pigweed 
{Amarantus}.  The  adults  occur  from  June  ist  to  the  first  part  of  Sep- 
tember, most  abundantly  in  the  latter  half  of  July  and  in  August.  Dr. 
Riley  found  them  at  St.  Louis  in  October,  and  a  second  brood  more 
or  less  complete  may  occur  in  the  South.  With  us,  however,  the  species 
is  apparently  single-brooded,  the  female  laying  four  or  five  hundred 
eggs,  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  at  a  time. 


Fig.  64.  The  Striped  Blister 
beetle,  Ep icauta  vittata 
(Bruner. ) 


THE  ASH-COLORED    BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Epicauta  cinerea  Forst. 

This  species,  extremely  like  the  gray  blister-beetle,  with  which  it 
has  evidently  often  been  confused,  appears  to  be  most  abundant  west- 
ward, principally  in  Nebraska  and  adjacent  states.  It  occurs,  however, 
in  small  numbers  in  Illinois  and  probably  farther  east.  It  is  quite 
destructive  to  plants  of  the  bean  family  in  Nebraska,  and  almost  de- 
stroyed a  small  beet  field  near  Lincoln  in  that  state.  It  often  completely 
defoliates  the  hornbeam,  honey-locust,  and  black  locust  trees.  It  has 
been  taken  sparingly  in  July  and  August  in  both  northern  and  southern 
Illinois,  most  commonly  on  the  Virginia  creeper. 

*This  form  is  so  generally  found  pairing  with  typical  vittata,  that  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  their 
specific  identity. 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


489 


THE  MARGINED  BLISTER-BEETLE. 


Fig.  65.     The  Margined  Blister-beetle,  Epicauta 
margittata,  adult. 


Epicauta  marginata  Fabr.     (E.  cinerea  marginata  Horn). 

This  blister-beetle,  very  com- 
mon in  Illinois,  is  easily  distin- 
guished by  its  general  black  color, 
except  that  the  wing-covers  are 
edged  with  gray.  It  is  quite  in- 
jurious to  beets  in  Illinois  and  In- 
diana, but  not  especially  so  in  Ne- 
braska. It  has  done  serious  injury 
to  beans,  tomatoes,  potatoes  and 
other  vegetables,  and  to  asters  and 
other  flowers.  Among  wild  plants 
it  feeds  upon  pigweed,  ground- 
cherry  (Physalis}  and  wild  sunflower 
{Helianthus}.  We  have  taken  the 
beetles  from  the  latter  part  of  June 
till  October,  most  abundantly  from 
about  the  middle  of  July  until  after 
the  middle  of  August.  Two  broods 
of  the  beetles  are  said  to  have  been  observed  in  Indiana. 

THE  BLACK  BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Epicauta  pennsylvanica  DeG. 

This  is  probably  our  most  destructive  blister-beetle  both  to  beets 
and  to  other  crops,  owing  especially  to  its  great  numbers  and  its  gre- 
garious feeding  habits.  It  seems  to  be  very  com- 
mon throughout  the  country  from  Massachusetts 
to  Utah.  It  is  found  in  Texas,  and  in  Kentucky 
is  said  to  have  destroyed  an  acre  of  beets  in  two 
days.  It  is  one  of  the  most  destructive  of  beet 
insects  in  Nebraska,  and  has  been  reported  to 
us  from  Minnesota  beet  fields,  and  is  known  to 
have  destroyed  a  beet  crop  in  some  part  of  New 
York.  It  feeds  upon  a  variety  of  plants  including 
potatoes,  beans,  carrots,  cabbages,  the  leaves  and 
silks  of  corn,  honey-locust,  passion-flowers,  garden 
pinks,  and  pigweed,  and,  especially  in  fall,  upon 
flowers  of  the  goldenrod,  rosin-weed  (Silphiuni), 
mustard,  etc.  The  adults  appear  from  June  to 
October.  The  period  of  its  greatest  abundance  is  during  August  and 


Fig.  66.  The  Black  Blister- 
beetle,  Epicauta  pennsyh'an- 
ica.  (Bruner.) 


49° 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


{August, 


September — about  a  month  later  than  that  of  the  other  species.     The 
Kentucky  outbreak  referred  to  above  occurred  late  in  July. 

NUTTALL'S  BLISTER-BEETLE. 
Cantharis  nuttalli  Say. 

This  beautiful  western  species,  shining 
green  and  red  or  purple,  is  distributed  from  the 
Mississippi  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  being  es- 
pecially abundant  northwestward  into  British 
America.  The  larvae  probably  feed  on  the  eggs 
of  the  Rocky  Mountain  grasshopper,  as  the 
beetles  seem  to  increase  in  numbers  after. "grass- 
hopper years. "  When  abundant  they  ravenously 
devour  the  tender  parts  of  garden  vegetables, 
including  beets,  beans  being  perhaps  injured 
worst.  The  adults  appear  about  July  ist  and 
in  some  localities  continue  in  destructive  num- 
bers into  the  fall.  For  this  species  destruction 
by  mechanical  means  is  evidently  to  be  pre- 
ferred to  insecticide  measures. 


Fig.    67. 
beetle,    Ca  n 
(Chittenden, 
Agriculture.) 


Nuttall's    Blister- 

tharis     nuttalli. 

U.    S.    Dept.     of 


SNO  UT-BEE  TLES. 

Rhynchophora. 

The  beetles  of  this  family  are  distinguished  by  the  character  of  the 
head,  which  is  drawn  out  in  front  into  a  more  or  less  evident  beak  or 
snout,  sometimes  short  and  broad,  sometimes  very  long  and  slender,  but 
always  attached  to  the  head  without  a  joint, and  bearing  the  mouth  and  the 
jaws  at  its  tip.  The  larvae  of  this  family  are  white, thick  grubs,  without  legs 
and  usually  with  brown  heads,  which  live  in  the  roots,  stems,  and  fruits 
of  plants,  within  which  the  eggs  are  deposited  by  the  female  beetle. 

The  adults  often  injure  plants  by  feeding  on  the  leaves,  stems, 
flowers,  and  fruit.  Those  with  short  snouts  simply  devour  the  leaves  or 
stems  from  without,  and  those  with  longer  snouts  puncture  the  stem  or 
some  other  thick  and  succulent  part  of  the  plant  and  devour  the  soft  sub- 
stance within.  In  this  manner  beets  are  injured,  the  leaves  being  eaten 
by  some  species,  and  the  leaf  stems  punctured  and  gouged  by  others.  So 
far  as  known  to  us,  the  larvae  of  the  snout-beetles  do  not  appear  in  the 
beet  root,  although  Lintner  makes  a  statement  to  that  effect. 
*i*  In  eastern  Europe  serious  injury  is  often  done  to  beets  by  beetles 
of  this  family,  but  in  America  they  have  rarely  been  abundant  enough 
in  the  beet  field  to  do  any  considerable  harm.  The  beetles  are  sluggish 
and  most  of  them  feign  death  when  disturbed,  falling  to  the  ground  and 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


49  I 


lying  motionless  there.  They  are  thus  easily  captured  by  hand,  or  they 
may  be  reached  by  the  usual  arsenical  insecticide  applications  to  the 
beet  plant. 

Seven  species  of  American  snout-beetles  are  known  to  feed  upon 
the  beet  leaf,  four  of  them  black  or  gray  with  broad  short  snouts,  and 
three  minute  black  or  gray  beetles  with  long  slender  snouts.  Tanymecus 
confertits  is  about  as  large  as  the  cucumber  beetle  and  one  fourth  of  an 
inch  long.  It  is  gray,  mottled  and  speckled  with  brown,  and  washed 
with  yellowish,  especially  on  the  subcylindrical  head  and  thorax. 
Epiccerus  imbricatus  (Fig.  68)  is  also  blackish  gray  with  oblique  pale- 
gray  bands  upon  the  back.  It  is  three-eighths  of  an  inch  long,  plump 
and  rounded,  and  much  heaviest  behind.  Two  species  of  Otiorhynchus 
common  to  this  country  and  Europe  infest  the  sugar  beet  in  America, 
O.  sulcatiis  and  O.  singularis.  Sulcatus,  three  eighths  of  an  inch  long, 
with  heavy  abdomen  and  small  distinct  thorax,  is  black,  without  trans- 
verse or  oblique  bands,  dotted  sparsely  with  minute  tufts  of  yellow  hairs; 
singularis  is  similar  but  smaller,  five  sixteenths  of  an  inch  long,  with  rela- 
tively larger  thorax,  the  color  dull  dark  brown  sprinkled  with  yellowish. 

Two  American  species  of  Centrinus  injure  the  leaf-stem  of  the  beet; 
C.  penicellus,  which  is  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  long,  brownish  gray, 
usually  with  denuded  black  spots  near  the  tip  of  the  wing-cover,  and  C. 
perscitus  about  half  as  long  as  the  foregoing  and  a  much  darker  grayish- 
brown.  A  minute  black  seed-weevil  {Apion~)  also  occurs  on  sugar  beets. 

THE   IMBRICATED  SNOUT-BEETLE. 
Epicarus  imbricatus  Say. 

This  beetle  feeds  upon  a  very  large  list  of  plants,  comprising  the 
sugar  beet,  the  leaves  and  bark  of  the  twigs  of  the  pear,  peach,  plum, 
apple,    cherry,    raspberry,  blackberry,  and  gooseberry,  the   leaves   and 
fruit  of  the  strawber- 
ry, and  the  leaves  of 
the   cabbage,    bean, 
watermelon,    musk- 
melon,   cucumber, 
squash,  beet,  potato, 
tomato,  sweet  -  pota- 
to, onion,   corn,  pig- 
eon-grass,and  locust, 
besides  the  blossoms 
of  the  red  clover.   In 

Fig.   63.      The  Imbricated  Snout-beetle,   Epiceerus  imbricatus:  ^ap 
the     beet     field     the     adult,   top  view;    b,  side  view;    c.  larva,  top  view;    d,  side  view;    t,  egg; 

largest  of  the  leaves  'f' eggs  °"  leaf'    (chittenden-  u-  s-  ^P'-  of  Agriculture.) 

are  eaten  away  until,  in  some  cases,  only  the  stems  and  a  few  fragments 

of  veins  and  leaves  are  left. 


4p2  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \AugUSt, 

This  species  is  widely  distributed  from  the  Atlantic  to  Utah  and 
Arizona,  except  in  the  most  northern  states.  It  is  especially  common 
on  sandy  soil  and  east  of  the  Mississippi.  Eggs  have  been  found  on  the 
pear  and  strawberry  and  on  the  wild  sensitive-pea  (Cassia  marilandica). 
They  are  elongate-cylindrical,  pale  yellowish,  smooth,  and  shining. 
They  are  placed  side  by  side  in  irregular  rows  within  a  concealment 
made  by  gluing  together  two  adjacent  leaves,  or  by  turning  over  the 
edge  of  the  leaf  and  gluing  it  securely  to  the  surface.  A  female  of 
this  species  kept  under  observation  in  Washington  laid  five  hundred  and 
forty  eggs,  which  hatched  in  from  ten  to  fifteen  days.  The  larvae  have 
not  as  yet  been  raised  to  maturity,  but  they  seem  to  thrive  in  confine- 
ment on  strawberry  leaves.  There  is  apparently  but  one  generation  in 
a  year,  the  species  hibernating  as  an  adult.  The  beetles  have  been 
found  abundant  in  early  spring  along  the  Potomac,  and  we  have  col- 
lected them  throughout  the  season  up  to  August  ist.  They  are  most 
injurious,  however,  in  May.  The  eggs  have  been  noticed  April  24th  to 
July  6th.  The  first  adults  of  the  season  seem  to  appear  about  Septem- 
ber ist,  and  specimens  of  this  generation  have  been  taken  by  us  in 
October. 

When  disturbed  the  beetles  drop  to  the  ground,  apparently  feigning 
death,  and  they  can  consequently  easily  be  destroyed  by  knocking 
them  off  the  plants  into  pans  of  water  covered  with  kerosene. 

THE  BLACK  VINE-WEEVIL. 
Otiorhynchus  sulcatus  Fabr. 

This  European  species  seems  not  to  thrive  in  the  United  States. 
Although  it  is  found  from  New  York  northwest  into  Canada  and  has 
long  been  known  on  this  continent,  it  is  still  comparatively  rare  here, 
and  its  injuries  have  been  confined  mainly  to  greenhouse  plants,  espe- 
cially the  fern  and  cyclamen.  In  Europe  it  is  a  troublesome  pest,  eat- 
ing the  leaves  and  shoots  of  grape,  strawberry,  raspberry,  mangel-wurzel, 
primrose,  etc.  The  eggs  are  laid  in  the  earth  at  the  roots  of  the  plant 
infested  by  the  adult.  There  is  but  one  brood  a  year,  and  the  species 
passes  the  winter  in  the  larva  stage.  The  pupa  is  formed  in  April,  and 
the  beetles  appear  in  April  and  May.  They  are  nocturnal  in  their  habits, 
feeding  only  in  the  night  and  hiding  usually  by  day.  They  are  conse- 
quently readily  collected  under  chips,  pieces  of  board,  etc.,  like  the 
plum-curculio. 

THE  CLAY- COLORED  WEEVIL.  LVITZl 

Otiorhynchus  singularis  Mann.    (O.  picipes  Fabr. ). 

This  European  species,  but  little  known  in  this  country,  is  a  nox- 
ious pest  in  England,  swarming  out  at  night  from  their  day-time  retreats, 


1900.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    KEET.  493 

and  devouring  the  leaves  of  vines,  fruit-trees,  raspberries,  currants,  and 
a  considerable  list  of  garden  crops.  Not  only  leaves,  but  buds,  green 
shoots,  and  tender  bark  are  eaten.  The  larvse  infest  the  roots  of  many 
of  the  plants  attacked  by  the  adults.  The  species  has  been  reported 
from  Essex,  Massachusetts,  by  Prof.  A.  S.  Packard.  Its  life  history  is 
substantially  the  same  as  that  of  the  preceding  species. 

Tanymecus  confer  fits  Gyll. 

This  species  has  been  but  once  reported  as  notably  injurious  to  the 
sugar  beet.  In  Nebraska  it  devoured  early  in  the  season  the  cocklebur, 
lamb's-quarters,  and  smartweed  in  a  twelve-acre  beet-field,  and  when 
these  were  gone  completely  destroyed  the  beets.  This  was  a  very  weedy 
field  which  had  been  allowed  to  fill  up  with  cockleburs,  and  the  beetles 
probably  bred  on  the  roots  of  this  plant. 

The  species  is  found  throughout  the  United  States  as  far  west  as 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  is  apparently  single-brooded  and  hibernates 
as  an  adult.  We  have  collected  it  in  November  and  December,  and  at 
various  dates  in  spring  and  summer  up  to  the  first  part  of  July.  A  few 
beetles  taken  by  us  in  September  were  probably  from  the  new  brood. 

Apion  sp. 

A  single  black  species  of  this  genus  of  minute  seed-weevils,  has 
been  found  by  Bruner  in  Nebraska  on  sugar  beets. 

Centrinus  penicellus  Hbst. 

This  little  beetle,  reported  by  Bruner  as  attacking  beets  in  the 
West,  is  moderately  common  from  the  Atlantic  States  to  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  It  gnaws  small  holes  in  the  leaf-stems,  and  when  numerous 
does  considerable  harm  to  plants  attacked.  Its  immature  stages  and 
life  history  are  unknown.  We  have  taken  the  beetle  in  the  latter  part 
of  July  and  in  August. 

Centrinus  perse  if- us  Hbst. 

Bruner  reports  this  species  also  as  injurious  to  beets,  gnawing  small 
holes  in  the  leaf-stems.  It  is  commoner  in  Nebraska  than  the  preced- 
ing species,  and  is  reported  also  from  Georgia,  Texas,  and  Iowa. 


THE   EXPOSED   LEAF-EATING    CATERPILLARS. 

Besides  the  web-worms,  cutworms,   leaf-rollers,  etc.,  already   dis- 
cussed, fifteen  species  of  caterpillars  have  thus  far  been  seen  by  us  or 


494  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

reported  by  others  feeding  upon  the  beet  leaf  with  a  frequency  to  make 
them  worthy  of  mention  in  this  article.  The  cigar-case-bearer  is  a 
minute  caterpillar,  instantly  recognized  by  the  whitish  cigar-shaped  case 
with  which  it  surrounds  its  body  in  summer,  only  the  head  and  legs  pro- 
jecting as  it  crawls  about.  The  common  army-worm  (Fig.  69),  the  cot- 
ton cutworm,  the  grass-worm  (Fig.  73),  and  the  beet  army-worm  are 
striped  with  gray,  blackish,  or  brown.  The  army-worm  has  three  dark 
stripes  on  each  side;  the  cotton  cutworm  maybe  recognized  by  two  con- 
spicuous rows  of  velvety  black  oval-triangular  spots  on  the  back,  and  by 
a  black  spot  on  each  side  of  the  first  segment  of  the  abdomen  just  be- 
hind the  legs;  and  the  grass-worm  and  the  beet  army-worm  have  on  each 
side  a  broad  blackish  stripe.  The  slight  differences  between  the  last 
two  will  be  given,  in  describing  the  beet  army-worm.  Next  follow  two 
green  larvae,  each  with  a  white  or  roseate  lateral  stripe.  One  of  these, 
Mamestra  trifolii  (Fig.  75  a,  b~],  is  distinguished  by  a  row  of  darker 
streaks  down  each  side  of  the  back  which  are  wanting  in  the  green  beet 
leaf-worm  (Peridroma  incivis}.  The  zebra-caterpillar  {Mamestra  pict.a — 
Fig.  77)  may  be  readily  known  by  its  brilliant  black  and  yellow  stripes 
and  bands,  and  the  pale  green  Plusias  (Fig.  76)  by  their  resemblance 
to  measuring-worms  as  they  move  along.  Having  but  three  pairs  of 
legs  on  the  abdomen  they  loop  the  body  more  or  less  in  locomotion. 
The  purslane-caterpillar  (Copidryas  gloveri — Fig.  78)  is  banded  with 
black  on  a  light  background;  and  the  purslane-sphinx  {Deilephila*)  is 
either  yellow-green, — with  eye-like  spots  on  each  segment,  often  accom- 
panied by  dark  stripes  (Fig.  81), — or  blackish,  with  series  of  pale  yellow 
spots  (Fig.  82). 

All  the  foregoing  are  smooth  or  naked  caterpillars.  Three  addi- 
tional species  are  densely  covered  with  a  fur  of  long  slender  hairs,  on 
account  of  which  they  have  received  the  general  name  of  the  woolly 
bears.  These  are  the  yellow  bear  {Spilos.oma  virgiiiica — Fig.  84  d,  Fig. 
85),  the  hedge-hog  caterpillar  {Pyrrharctia  Isabella — Fig.  84  c,  Fig.  86), 
and  the  salt-marsh  caterpillar  {Lettcarctia  acrcea — Fig.  84  a,  b~). 

x 

THE  CIGAR-CASE  BEARER. 
{Colcophora  fletcherella  Fernald.) 

This  little  caterpillar  in  its  curious  cigar-shaped  case  has  been  sev- 
eral times  noticed  by  us  on  sugar  beets,  eating  small  circular  holes 
through  the  leaves.  It  ranges  from  New  York  and  Canada  eastward, 
and  sometimes  seriously  injures  the  buds  of  apple,  pear,  and  plum  in 
"Spring,  and  later  bores  the  fruit.  It  spends  the  winter  partly  grown, 
forming  its  characteristic  case  about  the  middle  of  May.  It  pupates 
within  this  case,  attached  to  the  leaf,  in  June  and  July.  Its  injury  to 
beets  has  thus  far  been  altogether  insignificant. 


i  goo.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


495 


Fig.  69.    The  Army-worm,  Leucania  unipitncta 
larva. 


THE  ARMY-WORM. 
Leucania  unipiincta  Haw. 

The  common  army-worm  is  a  striped  caterpillar  with  sixteen  legs, 
of  similar  size  and  general  appearance  to  ordinary  cutworms,  to  which, 

indeed,  it  is  closely  related  in  the 
entomological  classification  and  by 
all  its  habits  except  the  occasional 
one  of  traveling  in  hordes  or  armies, 
to  which  its  common  name  is  due. 
When  full  grown  it  is  greenish  black, 
lighter  beneath,  with  three  dark 
stripes,  similar  in  width,  on  each  side 
of  the  body,  the  middle  one  nearly 
black.  The  adult  moth  is  fawn-colored,  with  dusky  hind  wings,  and 
with  a  small  white  dot  near  the  middle  of  each  fore  wing.  Although 
it  is  normally  a  grass  insect,  breeding  ordinarily  in  meadows,  or  occa- 
sionally in  fields  of  young  grain,  a  large  variety  of  garden  vegetables, 
including  beets,  are  accepted  by  it  as  food  if  they  happen  to  be 
in  its  line  of  march.  It  will 
notbe  seen  in  the  beet  field, 
however,  except  where  its 
ordinary  food  supplies  of 
grass  and  grain  have  be- 
gun to  fail,  compelling  it 
to  abandon  its  usual  feed- 
ing grounds.  It  is  a  com- 
mon insect  at  all  times 
and  in  all  parts  of  Illinois, 
but  it  is  not  noticeably  de- 
structive except  in  occasional  years  when  circumstances  favor  its  mul- 
tiplication to  an  extraordinary  extent. 

The  eggs  are  deposited  in  the  rolled-up  bases  of  grain  or  grass 
leaves  on  ground  where  the  rankest  growth  of  plants  occurs.  From  ten 
to  fifty  may  be  laid  on  a  single  leaf.  The  moths  are  of 
nocturnal  habit,  and  the  eggs  are  deposited  after  dark. 
The  caterpillars  feed  at  night,  usually  remaining 
hidden  by  day  except  during  cloudy  weather.  When 
full  grown  they  bury  themselves  in  the  ground  an  inch 
or  two,  forming  there,  by  turning  about,  a  smooth 
C3iVllY  withiti  which  the  transformations  occur.  There 
are  three  generations  in  a  year,  and  the  winter  is  passed 
mainly  in  the  moth  or  the  pupa  stage. 

The  adults,  which  come  abroad  in  early  spring  either  from  hibernat- 
ing pupae  or  from   the  winter  quarters   of  the   moths,  lay  eggs  late  in 


Fig  71.  The  Army-worm,  Leucania  unipuncta:  a,  male 
adult;  b,  abdomen  of  female  adult;  c,  eye;  d,  base  of  male 
antenna;  e,  base  of  female  antenna. 


pupa. 


496  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

April  or  early  in  May  for  the  first  brood  of  the  caterpillars.  The  second 
brood,  appearing  in  Illinois  late  in  June  or  early  in  July,  is  more  likely 
than  either  of  the  others  to  be  injurious,  and  more  than  one  of  the  three 
broods  is  never  destructive  in  the  same  locality. 

This  species  is  especially  subject  to  destruction  by  parasites,  which 
speedily  suppress  any  destructive  outbreak,  with  the  effect  that  thearmy- 
w.orm  is  rarely  especially  abundant  for  two  successive  years  in  the  same 
locality.  Commonly,  indeed,  an  interval  of  several  years  occurs  be- 
tween noticeable  army-worm  outbreaks. 

Wherever  these  insects  appear  in  numbers,  their  movement  may  be 
checked  and  themselves  destroyed  by  the  time-honored  farmer's  resource 
of  ditching  across  their  line  of  movement,  or  by  plowing  a  series  of 
furrows,  with  the  smooth  vertical  edge  facing  the  advancing  host.  In 
these  barriers,  which  they  will  not  easily  surmount,  they  can  readily  be 
destroyed  by  methods  generally  well  known.  Sometimes  a  similar 
purpose  may  be  effected  by  spraying  thoroughly  with  Paris  green  and 
water  a  strip  of  vegetation  which  the  army-worms  are  about  to  cross. 
If  they  are  abroad  in  the  vicinity  of  a  beet  field  their  progress  must  be 
promptly  arrested,  as  a  day's  delay  will  often  result  in  the  destruction 
of  several  acres  of  the  crop  exposed  to  their  invasion. 

THE  COTTON  CUTWORM. 

Prodenia  ornithogalli  Guen.    (/*.  lineatella  Harv.). 
This  caterpillar,   an  inch  and  a  third  to  an  inch  and  two-thirds 
long,  is  conspicuously  marked  with  a  row  of  velvety  black  oval-triangu- 
lar spots  along  the  back,  at  some  distance  on  each  side  of  the  middle. 

It  is  darker  than  the 

/ 

average  cutworm  and 
is  distinguished  by  a 
conspicuous  black 
spot  on  each  side 
just  behind  the  joint- 
ed legs.  It  has  a 
varied  list  of  food 
plants,  including 
beets,  corn,  wheat, 

Fig.  72.     The  Cotton  Cutworm,  Prodenia  ornithogalli,  adult. 

cabbage,  potato,  as- 
paragus, salsify,  peach,  raspberry,  and,  especially,  cotton.  Dr.  Riley 
says  that  he  found  it  on  practically  all  kinds  of  succulent  plants  both 
wild  and  cultivated.  It  is  one  of  the  common  caterpillars  in  Illinois 
beet  fields.  It  has  attracted  principal  attention  as  a  cotton  insect, 
destroying  sometimes  acres  of  young  plants  shortly  after  they  appeared 
above  ground,  and  later  boring  into  cotton  bolls  much  as  does  the  boll- 
worm  {Hcliothis).  The  species  is  found  from  Massachusetts  to  Minne- 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


497 


sota  and  California,  and  south  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  It  passes  the 
winter,  according  to  Riley,  most  generally  in  the  larval  stage,  but  some- 
times also  as  pupa  or  imago.  The  caterpillars  are  commonest  in  Illinois 
in  July  and  August,  where  there  is  perhaps  but  a  single  brood.  In  the 
South,  however,  there  seems  to  be  at  least  two  generations  annually,  one 
occurring  in  April  and  the  other  late  in  June. 


THE  COMMON  GRASS -WORM. 
Laphygma  frugiperda  S.  &  A. 

This  insect,  called  also  the  fall  army-worm,  and  often  confused  on 
that  account  with  the  true  army-worm,  was  extraordinarily  abundant 
throughout  Illinois  and  many  other  states  during  the  summer  of  1899. 
According  to  Chittenden's  article*  it  was  reported  from  New  York  and 

New  Jersey  southward  to  Florida,  and  westward 
to  Texas,  Kansas,  and  Nebraska.  It  attracted 
most  attention,  perhaps,  last  season  in  lawns, 
the  turf  of  which  it  completely  deadened  in 
many  towns;  but  it  was  also  injurious  to  small 
grain, corn,  broom-corn, etc., giving  rise  to  much 
apprehension  among  those  not  acquainted  with 
its  history  and  habits.  In  Illinois  it  was  defi- 
nitely reported  to  the  office  from  Chicago  and 
its  suburbs,  from  Quincy,  Meredosia,  Arcola, 
and  Urbana,  and  from  Villa  Ridge  in  extreme 
southern  Illinois,  as  well  as  from  many  inter- 
Fig.  73.  The  Common  Grass-  mediate  plaCCS. 

It  is  especially  fond    of  grass   and   other 

larva;  b,  head  of  larva,  front  view; 

c,  abdominal  segment  of  larva,  top  graminaceous  plants,  corn,  broom-corn,  wheat, 
view;  d,  side  view.  oatS)  etc      IQ  &  watermelon  field  it  cleared  out 

the  grass-like  weeds,  but  did  not  injure  the 
melon  vines.  Notwithstanding  its  abundance 
about  Champaign  none  were  seen  by  us  on  beets 
until  October,  when  young  larvae  were  found 
gnawing  the  leaves  of  that  plant.  Most  of  them 
were  freshly  hatched,  but  none  of  the  lot  was 
large  enough  for  unmistakable  identification. 
Its  list  of  food  plants  is  so  long  and  varied  as  to 
be  almost  exhaustive  of  our  ordinary  crops  and 
weeds.  Indeed,  in  extreme  cases  it  leaves 
scarcely  any  green  vegetation  uninjured,  and 
has  even  been  known  to  enter  greenhouses,  and  Fig.  74.  The  Common  Grass- 
to  eat  corn  fodder  in  the  stack.  w?rm>  L*pkys>«"fr*gi*r*a:  a' 

adult;   b,  c,  two-color  varieties. 


*Bull.  No.  23,  N.  S.,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  79. 


498  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

It  differs  from  the  army-worm  in  its  method  of  avoiding  the  con- 
sequences of  a  too  prolific  multiplication,  not  moving  off  in  definite 
hordes  and  in  fixed  directions,  like  the  latter  insect,  but  spreading 
indefinitely  in  all  directions  from  the  most  densely  populated  area. 

It  ranges  over  the  whole  United  States  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
and  it  is  also  found  in  Jamaica  and  Brazil.  There  are  at  least  two,  and 
probably  three,  generations  of  the  species  in  each  year  in  the  latitude 
of  central  Illinois,  one  becoming  destructive  in  the  larval  state  late  in 
July  and  continuing  abundant  in  August,  and  another  appearing  in  Octo- 
ber. The  fall  brood  is  usually  the  destructive  one,  any  other  rarely 
being  numerous  enough  to  attract  attention.  This  species  is  believed 
to  hibernate  mainly  in  the  pupa  stage,  but  partly  also,  in  all  probability, 
as  an  adult.  Thus,  larvae  collected  by  us  October  u,  1884,  were  mostly 
alive  in  the  earth  as  pupae  in  December,  a  few  only  having  emerged  in 
the  preceding  month. 

It  is  held  in  check  mainly,  if  not  wholly,  by  its  parasites,  of  which 
a  tachinid  fly  is  one  of  the  most  important. 

THE  BEET  ARMY-WORM. 
Laphygma  flavimacnlata  Harv. 

This  caterpillar,  which  replaces  the  foregoing  in  the  Western  States, 
differs  from  it  by  its  more  decidedly  mottled  ground-color,  by  a  row  of 
white  dots  at  the  lower  margin  of  the  lateral  dark  band,  and  by  the  yel- 
lower color  of  the  light  stripes.  It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  while  the 
preceding  species  was  doing  serious,  unusual,  and  very  wide-extended 
injuries  in  the  Eastern  and  Southern  States,  the  present  one  was  simi- 
larly abundant  in  Colorado,  where  besides  destroying  many  kinds  of 
weeds  and  grasses  it  completely  defoliated  thousands  of  acres  of  sugar 
beets.  In  some  cases  where  the  foliage  of  the  beet  did  not  furnish  it 
sufficient  food,  the  root  was  attacked  and  the  upper  surface  often  com- 
pletely gnawed  away.  Late  plantings  of  course  suffered  most  severely, 
especially  when  surrounded  by  newly  broken  ground.  The  weeds  most 
generally  eaten  were  pigweed,  saltweed,  wild  sunflower,  and  Cleome, 
Potato,  pea,  and  apple  leaves  were  also  devoured.  These  injuries 
occurred  about  the  middle  of  August,  at  which  time  larvae  and  pupae 
were  abundant,  and  a  few  moths  laden  with  eggs  were  also  noticed. 
These  facts  are  derived  from  the  statements  of  Prof.  C.  P.  Gillette,  of 
the  Colorado  Experiment  Station,  who  furnished  the  material  for  this 
account  together  with  specimens  of  the  insect. 

This  species  evidently  hibernates  as  a  moth,  and  at  least  two  broods 
of  larvae  may  be  looked  for  each  year,  the  first  about  June  and  the  sec- 
ond in  August.  The  species  has  been  reported  thus  far  from  Colorado 
and  California,  but  it  doubtless  has  a  more  extended  range  in  the  moun- 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


499 


tain  region  of  the  far  West.  Prof.  Gillette's  field  experiments  showed 
that  it  could  be  destroyed  by  dusting  or  spraying  arsenical  poisons  on 
the  beet  leaf. 

THE  GARDEN  MAMESTRA. 

Mamestra  trifolii  Rott. 

(J/.  chenopodii  Albin. ) 

This  green  larva,  striped  with  rose  or  pinkish  white,  with  a  row  of 
darker  lines  on  each  side  of  the  back,  is  found  all  over  Europe  and  North 
America.  It  infests  a  variety 
of  garden  plants  and  weeds,  and 
sometimes  does  considerable  in- 
jury to  beets  by  eating  the  leaves 
or  even  the  entire  tops  of  small 
plants,  as  reported  by  Bruner  in 
Nebraska.  We  have  found  it  also 
on  beets  in  late  September  and 
early  October  on  the  Experiment 
Station  farm  in  Illinois.  In  Amer- 
ica it  has  been  noted  feeding  on 
cabbage,  turnips,  and  numerous 
other  garden  vegetables,  and  upon 
lamb's-quarters  and  purslane 
among  the  common  weeds.  It  is 
evidently  two-brooded,  hibernat- 
ing as  a  pupa,  and  the  moths  ap- 
pearing in  the  early  spring.  We 
have  found  them  abundant  at 
electric  lights  in  May.  Larvse  of 
the  first  brood  have  been  taken  in 
June  and  early  July,  and  of  the 

second  brood  in  September  and  early  October.  Larvae  taken  from  the 
sugar  beet  September  26th  and  October  pth  entered  the  ground  for 
pupation  between  October  8th  and  i3th. 

Mamestra  sp. 

Bruner  mentions  a  larva  found  abundant  in  beets  at  Norfolk,  Neb., 
which  was  about  the  size  and  general  appearance  of  the  darker  form  of 
M.  trifolii  but  differed  in  habits  and  markings.  It  was  not  bred  to  the 
imago,  and  its  species  is  consequently  unknown. 

THE  GREEN  BEET  LEAF-WORM. 

Peridroma  incivis  Guen. 

During  1899  and  1900  this  green  larva,  with  a  white  or  roseate  stripe 
on  each  side,  was  the  commonest  caterpillar  on  beet  leaves  in  Illinois. 


Fig.  75.  The  Garden  Mamestra,  Mamestra  tri- 
folii: a,  b,  larva;  c,  pupa;  d,  adult;  e,  wing  of  adult 
enlarged;  f,  last  segment  of  pupa,  ventral  view. 
(Riley,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


5°° 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August, 


It  fed  freely  exposed  on  either  the  under  or  upper  side  of  the  leaf,  eat- 
ing irregular  holes,  but  not  becoming  seriously  injurious.  Garman 
reports  it  as  a  common  Kentucky  insect.  It  ranges  from  Florida  and 
Texas  to  Massachusetts  and  Illinois,  and  occurs  also  in  California. 
French  and  Garman  speak  of  it  as  feeding  in  gardens,  and  we  have 
found  it  eating  purslane  as  well  as  sugar  beets.  The  larva  enters  the 
ground  and  pupates  there.  In  southern  Illinois  and  Kentucky  the 
species  is  apparently  two-brooded.  Larvae  are  common  in  spring, 
yielding  the  imago  in  June  and  July;  and  another  brood  of  larvae  oc- 
curring in  August  and  September  gives  the  imago  in  October.  In 
central  Illinois  we  have  found  larvae  of  all  sizes  common  in  July  and 
again  in  September,  the  last  of  them  disappearing  about  October  i5th. 
Examples  taken  July  i4th  and  26th  and  September  ad  all  went  into  the 
winter  in  the  pupa  stage.  Further  study  of  the  life  history  is  evidently 
necessary  to  determine  the  usual  facts  for  this  species. 


THE  CABBAGE  PLUSIA. 
Plusia  brassica  Riley. 

This  pale  green  looping  caterpillar  is  striped  with  longitudinal 
whitish  lines  of  varying  distinctness,  which  narrow  noticeably  towards 
the  head.  It  is  by  preference  a  cabbage  insect,  but  occasionally  eats 
the  leaves  of  beets.  When  young  it  eats  small  holes  in  leaves,  but  as  it 
grows  larger  it  devours  the  leaf  completely,  and  even  gnaws  away  the 
stalk.  It  is  seriously  injurious  to  the  cabbage  in  the  South,  and  in 

Minnesota  was  reported  in 
1884  to  be  almost  as  injuri- 
ous to  cabbage  as  the  com- 
mon cabbage  worm  {Pieris 
rapce).  It  feeds  also  on 
celery,  kale,  turnip,  tomato, 
lettuce,  mignonette,  dande- 
lion, dock,  clover,  lamb's- 
quarters,  and  some  less 
common  cultivated  plants. 
It  ranges  throughout  the 
United  States,  and  occurs 


also  in  Canada.  The  eggs 
are  laid  upon  the  food  plant 
singly  or  in  small  clusters, 
loosely  attached  to  the  leaf. 
The  full  grown  larva  spins  a  gauzy  cocoon  wrapped  in  the  leaf  or 
attached  to  the  stem,  and  within  this  the  green  or  light  yellowish  pupa 
is  presently  found.  The  blackish  or  dark  gray  moths  are  distinguished 


Fig.  76.     The  Cabbage  Plusia,  Plusia  brassica  :  a,  larva; 
b,  pupa  in  its  thin  cocoon;   c,  adult. 


1900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGV  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.  501 

by  a  silvery  U-shaped  spot  on  the  middle  of  the  fore  wing  and  an  oval 
silvery  dot  adjoining  it  on  the  outside. 

The  number  of  generations  annually  has  not  been  satisfactorily  de- 
termined. Riley  believed  that  there  were  probably  four  in  the  latitude  of 
Washington,  D.  C.  This  caterpillar  has  an  enormously  destructive 
parasitic  enemy,  a  minute  hymenopterous  insect,  which  pupates  within 
the  skin  of  its  dead  host  and  emerges  in  almost  incredible  numbers,  over 
twenty-five  hundred  having  been  counted  which  must  have  come  from  a 
single  infested  larva.  In  a  large  lot  of  larvae  collected  by  us  at  Urbana, 
only  one  example  escaped  parasitism,  and  Dr.  Riley  reports  a  similar 
observation  upon  fifty  larvae  collected  by  him. 

THE  CELERY  PLUSIA. 
Plusia  simplex  Guen. 

This  is  our  commonest  Illinois  Plusia.  It  occurs  generally  in  the 
United  States  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  as  well  as  in  New  Mexico 
and  the  Hudson  Bay  Territory.  It  is  a  very  destructive  celery  insect,  and 
we  have  bred  it  from  a  larva  found  feeding  on  the  sugar  beet.  It  differs 
from  the  cabbage  species  in  the  fact  that  its  spiracles  are  distinctly 
ringed  with  black,  according  to  Coquillett,  while  in  the  cabbage  Plusia 
these  rings  are  indistinct,  partial,  or  wanting.  There  are  believed  to  be 
three  broods  of  this  species  in  a  year.  The  caterpillars  of  the  first 
generation  of  the  year  hatch  late  in  May  and  get  their  growth  late  in  June 
or  early  in  July.  The  life  of  the  second  generation  extends  from  the 
first  part  of  July  to  the  middle  of  September,  and  the  third  begins  to 
issue  from  the  egg  early  in  October.  This  brood  hibernates  about  half- 
grown,  attaining  full  size  during  the  latter  half  of  .April.  This  account, 
compiled  from  Coquillett's  statement  in  the  Eleventh  Illinois  Report,  is 
confirmed  by  our  collections,  in  which  the  moths  of  this  species  occur 
twice  in  April,  ten  times  early  in  May,  ten  times  between  July  i5th  and 
August  i5th,  and  six  times  in  the  latter  half  of  September. 

THE    ZEBRA-CATERPILLAR. 
Mamestra  picta  Harr. 

Although  evidently  preferring  cabbage  and  other  cruciferous  plants, 
this  abundant  and  conspicuous  caterpillar  occasionally  attacks  beets. 
It  seems  to  be  somewhat  whimsical  in  its  food  habits.  It  has  been  re- 
ported by  Felt,  of  New  York,  as  excessively  abundant  in  timothy  and 
as  the  probable  agent  in  the  destruction  of  twenty  acres  of  oats.  Other 
food  plants  recorded  are  cauliflower,  turnip,  rutabaga,  bean,  pea,  carrot, 
celery,  potato,  spinach,  asparagus,  buckwheat,  corn,  clover,  currant, 
cranberry,  apple,  orange,  willow,  spruce,  mignonette,  aster,  sweet  pea, 
snowberry,  honeysuckle,  smartweed,  burdock,  and  lamb's-quarters.  It 


5°2 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August  r 


is  distributed  from  Canada  to  Florida,  and  west  to  Nebraska.  The  eggs 
are  deposited  in  large  clusters  of  as  many  as  a  hundred  and  fifty  each, 

usually  on  the  under  surfaces 
of  the  leaves.  The  young 
caterpillars  are  at  first  white, 
hairy,  and  speckled,  each 
with  a  black  head  and  a 
black  crescent  upon  the 
thorax.  They  feed  for  a 
time  in  a  dense  group,  but 
after  a  few  days  they  molt 
and  assume  the  zebra-mark- 
ings of  the  full  grown  larva. 
This  is  black  with  two  yellow 
stripes  on  each  side,  the 
broad  interval  between 
which  is  crossed  by  numer- 
ous fine  white  lines.  The 
under  surface  is  tawny. 

When  disturbed  the  caterpillar  coils  up  and  falls  to  the  ground.  It 
pupates  under  ground  within  a  rude  cocoon.  There  are  two  genera- 
tions a  year,  hibernation  being  either  in  the  pupal  or  larval  stage.  The 
first  and  most  destructive  brood  of  larvae  occurs  in  June  and  July,  and 
the  second  in  September  and  October. 

THE  PURSLANE-CATERPILLAR. 
Copidryas  gloveri  G.  &  R. 


Fig.  77.    The  Zebra-caterpillar,  Mainestra  picta:  a,  larva 
b,  adult.     (Riley,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


Fig.  78.  The  Purslane-caterpillar,  Copi- 
dryas gloveri :  a.  adult;  b,  larva.  (Rfley  & 
Howard,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture.) 


Fig.  79.  The  Purslane- 
caterpillar,  Copidryas 
gloveri,  egg,  greatly  en- 
larged. (Riley  &  How- 
ard, U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agri- 
culture ) 


Fig.  80.  The  Purs- 
lane-caterpillar, Copi- 
dryas gloveri,  with 
head  and  last  seg- 
ments enlarged. 
(Riley  and  Howard, 
U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agri- 
culture.) 


This  insect,  the  usual  food  of  which  is  purslane,  is  not  an  Illinois 
species,  but  as  it  seems  to  have  spread  from  its  original  home  in  Texas 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


and  New  Mexico  into  Kansas  and  Nebraska  it  may  yet  reach  Illinois, 
where  there  is  certainly  no  lack  of  its  favorite  food.  In  Nebraska  it 
has  been  seen  to  feed  on  the  leaves  of  the  sugar  beet.  Its  size  is  about 
that  of  a  common  cutworm.  It  is  whitish  or  light  gray,  conspicuously 
banded  with  black  on  each  segment,  and  shaded  with  salmon-pink. 
The  eggs  are  laid  in  clusters  of  two  to  five  on  the  under  side  of  the  leaf 
of  the  infested  plant.  The  young  larvae,  which  hatch  in  two  or  three 
days,  are  light  or  yellowish  green  at  first,  with  darker  shadings.  They 
become  full  grown  in  eight  or  nine  days,  and  make  then  a  tubular 
burrow  in  the  earth  for  pupation,  closing  the  opening  with  a  thin  layer 
of  dirt.  After  about  twelve  days  as  a  pupa,  the  moth  appears.  This 
is  brownish  gray,  with  a  creamy  curved  streak  along  the  fore  wings,  the 
hind  wings  buff  with  a  blackish  border.  Four  broods  of  this  caterpillar 
have  been  recorded. 


THE    PURSLANE-SPHINX. 
Deilephila  lineata  Fabr. 

This  fairly  well-known  caterpillar  varies  in  markings  to  an  unusual 
degree.  Two  distinct  forms  may  be  separated,  one  yellow-green,  with 
eye-like  spots  on  each  segment,  often  accompanied  by  dark  stripes,  the 


Fig.  81.      The  Purslane-sphinx,  Deilephila  lineata,  larva. 

other  blackish  with  series  of  pale  yellow  spots.  Its  favorite  food-plants 
are  purslane  and  chickweed,  and  on  these  it  may  often  be  found  in  con- 
siderable numbers.  Its  preferences  are  not  very  strict,  however,  and  it 
may  devour  almost  any  low  plant.  It  is  reported  by  Bruner  to  injure 


Fig.  82.     The  Purslane-sphinx,  Deilephila  lineata,  larva,  dark  variety.     (Lippincott  Co.) 

the  sugar  beet  in  Nebraska,  and  has  been  seen  eating  beet  leaves  at 
Pekin,  111.  Thus  far  it  has  caused  no  serious  injury  to  vegetables  in  cul- 
tivation, and  if  it  should  become  locally  abundant  it  could  easily  be 
destroyed  by  hand.  When  full  grown  it  forms  a  smooth  cavity  in  the 


504  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

earth  within  which  it  changes  to  a  light-brown  pupa  with  a  tongue-sheath 
like  the  handle  of  a  pitcher.  The  handsome  well-known  moth  from 
this  pupa  is  commonly  called  the  white-lined  morning-sphinx.  It  is  one 
of  the  twilight  species  which  when  flitting  about  flowers  in  the  dusk  is 
most  likely  to  be  mistaken  for  a  hummingbird  by  those  ignorant  of  the 


Fig.  83.     The  Purslane-sphinx,  Deilephila  lineata,  adult.     (Lippincott  Co.) 

habits  of  that  species.  It  is  also  not  uncommon  at  the  electric  light. 
This  sphinx-moth  is  two-brooded,  the  larvae  of  the  first  brood  being 
most  abundant  in  July  and  August,  and  those  of  the  second  from  the 
middle  of  September  through  October.  It  hibernates  in  the  pupa  stage. 

THE  WOOLLY  BEARS  {Arctiidce). 

THE  YELLOW  BEAR  (Spilosoma  virginica  Fabr.). 

THE  HEDGE- HOG  CATERPILLAR  (Pyrrharctia  Isabella  Abb.). 

THE  SALT-MARSH  CATERPILLAR  {Leucarctia  acrcea  Dru.). 

The  larvae  of  these  three  related  species  are  one  and  a  half  to  one 
and  three  fourths  inches  long,  and  thickly  coated  with  erect  hairs — from 
which  fact  their  general  name  is  derived.  They  are  common  and  widely 
distributed,  and  very  general  feeders,  devouring  leaves  of  garden  vege- 
tables (including  beets),  small  fruits,  vines,  and  young  trees.  The  yel- 
low bear  is  probably  the  commonest  and  the  salt-marsh  caterpillar  the 
least  common  of  the  three  in  Illinois.  The  hedge-hog  caterpillar,  tawny 
red  on  the  middle  half  or  two-thirds  of  the  body  and  black  at  each  end, 
is  a  familiar  object  in  late  fall  and  early  spring,  often  noticed  as  it  hur- 
ries over  the  ground  in  search  of  hibernating  quarters,  for  it  passes  the 
winter  in  the  larval  stage.  It  derives  its  popular  name  from  the  fact 
that  it  rolls  itself  up  into  a  bristly  ball  when  frightened  or  disturbed.  In 
the  other  two  species  the  coat  is  nearly  uniform  in  color  throughout,  but 
differs  in  shade  from  very  light  to  very  dark.  The  head  of  the  yellow 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


bear  is  pale  and  unmarked,  the  hair  is  commonly  dark  brown,  the  body 
beneath  it  often  with  dusky  stripes.     In  the  salt-marsh  caterpillar  the 


Fig.  84.  Faces  of  woolly  bear  larvae:  a,  b,  The  Salt-Marsh  Caterpillar,  Leucarctia  acrtza,  showing" 
variation  in  extent  of  black  coloring;  c.  The  Hedge-hog  Caterpillar,  Pyrrharctia  Isabella;  d,  The- 
Yellow  Bear,  Spilosoma.  virginica.. 

head  is  more  or  less  black,  the  hair  is  commonly  dark  brown,  and  the 

body  is  blackish,  with 
pale  lateral  and  medio- 
dorsal  stripes.  Both 
these  species  hibernate 
in  the  pupa  stage.  When 
quite  young  the  larvaer 
merely  eat  the  surface  of 
the  leaves,  but  when 
older  they  make  large 
holes.  When  one  of  the 
woolly  bears  is  full 
grown  it  seeks  a  conven- 
ient shelter,  makes  rath- 
a,  larva;  er  a  thick  cocoon  of  the 
hairs  of  its  coat  inter- 
woven with  coarse  silk,  and  transforms  within  this  to  a  dark  brown 
chrysalis.  The  pupa  of  the  hedge-hog  caterpillar  bears  some  tufts  of- 
golden  bristles,  and  its  tawny  cocoon  is  often  found  on  old  boards. 


Fig,    85.      The   Yellow    Bear, 
b,  pupa;   c,  adult. 


506 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


The  perfect  insects  of  these  species  are  very  well-known  thick-bod- 
ied moths,  that  of  the  yellow  bear  being  the  one  to  which  the  common 
name  of  "miller"  is  most  likely  to  be  attached.  Its  heavily-coated 
wings  are  snowy  white  with  a  few  black  dots,  and  the  abdomen  orange, 
with  three  rows  of  black  spots  above.  The  adult  of  the  hedge-hog  cat- 
erpillar is  the  Isabella  moth,  orange-buff  on  wings  and  body,  with  the 
hind  wings  tinted  more  or  less  with  rose.  The  wings  are  also  speckled 

with  black,  and  black  dots  are 
arranged  on  the  upper  surface 
of  the  abdomen  in  three  longi- 
tudinal rows.  The  moth  of  the 
salt-marsh  caterpillar  has  the 
abdomen  orange,  and  all  the 
wings  white  in  the  female,  the 
male  differing  by  the  orange 
hinder  wings.  In  both  sexes 
the  wings  are  thickly  speckled 
with  black,  and  the  abdomen 
with  black  in  three  longitudinal 
rows.  All  three  of  the  species 
seem  to  be  normally  two- 
brooded.  The  larvae  of  the  first 
brood  are  commonest  in  June 
and  July,  and  those  of  the  sec- 
ond brood  in  September.  The  woolly  bears  are  frequently  beset  by 
hymenopterous  parasites,  and  the  hedge-hog  caterpillar  seems  especially 
subject  to  death  by  muscardine — due  to  the  attacks  of  a  parasitic  fungus 
which  converts  the  body  soon  after  death  into  a  rigid  mummy,  scarcely 
shrunken  from  the  proportions  of  the  living  insect. 


Fig.  86.     The  Hedge-hog  Caterpillar,  Pyrrharctia. 
Isabella:    a,  larva;    b,  pupa  in  cocoon;    c,  adult. 


Injuries  to  the  roots. 

In  case  an  unthrifty  condition  of  the  beet  plant  is  not  fully  ex- 
plained by  injuries  to  the  foliage,  an  examination  of  the  roots  will  often 
betray  the  presence  there  of  insects  doing  an  injury  sufficient  to  diminish 
the  general  vigor  of  the  plant,  or  which  may  result  in  its  destruction. 
There  are  two  classes  of  injury  to  the  roots  of  beets  by  insects;  those 
resulting  from  a  sucking  of  the  sap  from  the  tissue  of  the  root  by  true 
bugs  (ffemiptera);  and  those  due  to  beetles  and  their  larvae,  which  gnaw 
the  surface  of  the  root  or  eat  into  its  substance.  Injuries  by  the  sucto- 
rial Hemiptera  are  distinctly  recognizable  only  when  the  insects  them- 
selves are  found  on  the  root,  since  the  local  effect  of  the  abstraction  of 
the  sap  is  not  usually  very  marked.  The  insects  of  this  description  thus 


19°°-] 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


S°7 


far  noticed  on  the  beet  root  are  few  in  number,  and  have  rarely  been  of 
great  importance.  Our  present  list  of  those  infesting  the  root  of  the 
beet  is  limited  to  two  species  of  plant-lice  {Pemphigus  beta,  and  Aphis 
middletonii)  and  a  single  mealy  bug  (Dactylopius^,  the  species  of  which 
is  uncertain. 

ROOT-LICE  (Aphididcz  and  Cocfidat). 

THE  BEET  APHIS. 
Pemphigus  beta  Doane. 

This  insect,  but  very  lately  brought  to  the  attention  of  beet-growers, 
offers  an  extraordinary  example  of  the  injury  to  vegetation  which  may 
be  done  by  root-lice.  Our  information  concerning  it  is  due  to  Mr.  R. 
W.  Doane.  Assistant  Zoologist  of  the  Washington  State  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station,  at  Pullman,  Wash.,  whose  latest  publication  on  this 
species  is  contained  in  Bulletin  42  of  that  Station. 

Attention  was  first  called  to  this  pest,  he  says,  in  1896,  when  it  was 
found  that  a  field  of  two  or  three  acres  of  beets  was  generally  infested, 

a  strip  of  twenty-five  to  a  hun- 
dred yards  being  so  badly  in- 
jured that  the  beets  were  nearly 
all  soft  and  spongy,  and  the 
plants  much  smaller  than  the 
average.  Other  beet  fields  in 
the  vicinity  of  this  were  also 
generally  infested.  During  sub- 
sequent years  this  aphis  has 
been  found  in  considerable 
numbers  in  almost  every  beet 
field  in  that  locality,  and  in 
1899  it  was  unusually  destruc- 
tive. 

It  was  first  described  as  a  new  species  by  Mr.  Doane  in  1900,  and 
seems  thus  far  to  have  been  found  only  in  Washington  and  Oregon.  In 
the  latter  state  it  has  been  even  more  destructive  than  in  Washington, 
at  least  a  thousand  tons  of  beets  having  been  destroyed  by  it  in  one 
year  in  a  single  valley  devoted  largely  to  beet  culture.  Like  very  many 
other  beet  insects,  this  species  infests  also  several  wild  or  useless  plants; 
a  wild  yarrow  (Achillcea  lanulosa  Nutt.)  and  a  knot-weed  {Polygomtm 
arii 11 tare},  together  with  various  other  weeds  and  grasses,  both  native 
and  introduced.  It  has  also  been  reported  as  occurring  on  potatoes, 
cultivated  roses,  and  the  wild  service-berry,  but  its  identity  in  these 
cases  is  as  yet  in  doubt. 

This  root  aphis  occurs   in  two   forms,   wingless  and   winged,   the 


Fig.  87.    The  Beet  Aphis,  Pemphigus  betie :  a,  winged 
female;  b.  wingless  female;  c,  antenna  of  winged  female. 

(Doane. ) 


508  BULLETIN    NO.    60. 

wingless  form  being  much  the  more  abundant.  These  are  small,  pale 
yellow  or  whitish,  with  a  mass  of  flocculent  matter  covering  the  posterior 
part  of  the  body,  evidently  much  as  in  the  case  of  the  woolly  aphis  of 
the  apple.  Indeed,  the  first  thing  to  attract  attention  when  an  infested 
beet  is  examined  is  .this  white  fungus-like  substance  covering  the  in- 
fested surface.  The  insects  are  mostly  pear-shaped,  an  eighth  of  an 
inch  in  length  when  full  grown. 

"Upon  examination  with  the  lens  the  whole  body,  including  the  legs 
and  antennae,  is  seen  to  be  dusted  over  with  a  white  powder,  and  the  floc- 
culent mass  is  seen  to  be  made  up  of  thousands  of  very  fine  white  threads 
arising  from  the  last  three  or  four  segments  of  the  body  and  often  half 
as  long  as  the  body  itself.  The  legs  and  antennae  and  a  rather  large  spot 
on  the  dorsal  side  of  the  head  are  brown.  The  eyes  appear  as  small 
black  dots  on  the  sides  of  the  head.  The  antennas  are  six  jointed,  the 
third  joint  being  the  longest;  the  sixth  joint,  which  is  the  next  in  length, 
has  the  distal  portion  contracted  so  it  is  only  about  half  as  large  as  the 
basal  portion. 

"Winged  forms  are  also  often  found  late  in  the  season.  These  are 
somewhat  larger,  more  elongated,  and  very  much  darker  in  color.  The 
whole  head  and  thorax,  together  with  the  legs  and  antennae,  are  bluish 
black,  lightly  dusted  with  the  white  powder.  The  abdomen  is  dark  green 
with  only  a  little  of  the  flocculent  matter  on  the  posterior  segments.  The 
thin  membranous  wings  are  usually  held  folded  roof-like  over  the  body, 
beyoud  the  tip  of  which  they  extend  for  some  distance.  The  eyes  are 
much  larger  than  in  the  wingless  forms  and  are  brown.  With  the  winged 
forms  a  number  of  pupae  usually  also  occur.  These  look  just  like  th2 
winged  forms,  but  instead  of  the  wings  they  have  little  blunt  pad-like 
organs,  the  undeveloped  wings,  on  either  side  of  the  thorax." 

The  smaller  rootlets  of  the  beet  are  first  attacked  by  this  aphis, 
and  if  it  occurs  in  considerable  numbers  these  are  soon  all  destroyed, 
and  the  leaves  thereupon  soon  wither,  and  the  whole  beet  shrivels  and 
becomes  spongy.  This  wilting  of  the  leaves  will  frequently,  in  fact,  be 
the  first  thing  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  beet  grower.  The  actual 
injury  to  the  crop  will,  of  course,  depend  largely  upon  the  time  when  the 
attack  of  the  aphis  is  made.  If  the  plants  are  small  they  may  readily  be 
destroyed,  while  if  they  are  practically  full  grown  the  loss  of  the  small 
rootlets  will  not  materially  affect  them. 

No  sexual  generation  of  this  aphis  has  as  yet  been  discovered  and 
no  eggs  have  been  seen,  viviparous  reproduction  continuing  throughout 
the  year  except  when  the  cold  of  the  winter  temporarily  suspends  the 
physiological  activities  of  the  species.  The  winged  females,  appearing 
from  time  to  time  during  the  summer  and  fall,  serve  to  distribute  the 
species  generally,  new  colonies  being  started  wherever  these  females 
find  lodgment  and  food.  In  districts  liable  to  injury  by  this  insect  it 


1900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          509 

seems  inadvisable  that  beets  should  ba  the  first  crop  on  new  land,  or 
that  ground  should  be  continued  in  beets  or  in  any  other  root  crop  after 
the  pest  has  made  its  appearance  in  the  field. 

Aphis  iniddletonii  Thos. 

Occasionally  colonies  of  this  root  aphis,  which  had  previously  been 
found  only  on  roots  of  certain  weeds,  were  detected  by  us  in  1899  and 
1900  in  Illinois  on  the  sugar  beet,  established  among  the  smaller  roots 
on  each  side  of  the  main  mass  of  the  beet.  Only  a  small  percentage  of 
the  beets  examined  were  infested.  Two  species  of  ants,  Lasius  niger 
alienus  and  Formica  schaufussi,  were  running  about  among  them  in  a 
way  to  indicate  an  association  of  the  usual  form. 

The  wingless  insects  of  this  species  are  greenish  gray,  with  dark 
spots  above,  near  the  sides,  and  some  dark  cross-bars  in  front  of  the 
middle.  The  winged  individuals  have  the  head  and  thorax  black. 
Thomas  found  the  winged  form  among  the  wingless  ones  during  the 
latter  part  of  September,  and  the  eggs  occurred  at  the  same  time  among 
the  roots. 

The  species  is  recorded  as  abundant  on  the  roots  of  various  weeds 
of  the  order  Compositce — the  fleabanes  {Erigeron)\  horse- weed  {Ambrosia 
trifida~],  goldenrod  (Solidago  serotincf),  iron-weed  {Vernonia),  and  aster. 
It  has  been  recorded  from  Illinois,  Minnesota,  and  Nebraska. 

THE  ROOT  MEALY  BUG. 
Dactylopius  sp. 

A  minute  whitish  insect,  resembling  a  wingless  plant-louse,  but  with 
an  oblong  or  oval  body  and  very  short  legs  and  antennae,  may  some- 
times be  found  on  sugar  beets.  Like  the  beet  root-aphis,  described 
above,  it  is  usually  well  covered  with  a  white  waxy  excretion.  Such 
insects  infest  the  roots  of  a  considerable  variety  of  plants.  Little  is 
known  of  their  life  history,  and  very  few  have  been  taken  on  beets.  A 
single  immature  specimen  was  seen  on  a  sugar-beet  root  in  July  in  Illi- 
nois along  with  examples  of  Aphis  middletonii,  and  specimens  doubtfully 
referred  by  Cockerell  to  Dactylopius  solani  Q,\A\.  were  found  in  Colorado 
on  the  crown  of  the  sugar  beet.  This  species  occurs  on  the  roots  of  a 
common  western  weed,  Solatium  rostratnm,  and  a  variety  of  it  infests 
the  roots  of  a  plant  of  the  beet  family,  Atriplex  canescens. 

WIRE  WORMS. 

E  later  idee. 

Among  the  subterranean  insect  enemies  of  the  beet  one  may  occa- 
sionally find,  buried  in  its  substance  or  eating  into  it  from  without,  long, 
cylindrical,  hard,  smooth,  reddish  brown,  worm-like  larvae,  about  an 


BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

inch  long  when  full  grown,  and  with  three  pairs  of  short  legs  immedi- 
ately back  of  the  head.  This  last  is  flattened,  wedge-shaped,  with  the 
mouth  in  front  and  the  jaws  extending  forward.  These  wireworms  are 
ordinarily  most  abundant  in  grass-lands,  which  are  their  normal  breed- 


Fig.  88.  The  Corn 
Wireworm,  Melano- 
ius  cribulosus,  larva. 


Fig.  90.  The  Corn  Wire- 
worm,  Mclanotiis  cribulosus, 
last  segment  of  larva,  top 
view. 


Fig.  92.  The  Corn 
\Vireworm,  Melanotus 
cribulosus,  right-side 
view  of  one  of  the 
middle  segments. 


Fig.  8y.    Drasterius  ele. 
gans,  larva. 


Fig.  91.      Drasterius  elegans,    last 
segment  of  latva,  top  view. 


ing  grounds,  but  as  they  live  in  the  earth  about  two  years  before  trans- 
forming to  the  adult  beetle  stage,  they  continue  their  injuries  to  suc- 
ceeding crops  when  the  infested  pastures  or  meadows  are  broken  up, 
often  doing  much  greater  injury  to  this  cultivated  vegetation  than  to 
the  grass  the  roots  of  which  furnish  their  usual  food. 

These  wireworms  have  been  found  to  eat  the  smaller  roots  of  beets, 
and,  burrowing  into  the  tap-roots  and  crowns,  often  cause  the  plants  to 
shrivel  and  die.  The  species  have  not  ordinarily  been  discriminated  by 
observers,  but  we  have  seen  larvae  of  Melanotus  cribulosus  and  of  Dras- 
terius elegans  about  beet  roots  which  had  been  more  or  less  injured  and 
eaten  away.  An  elaborate  account  of  them  and  of  their  injuries  to  corn 
will  be  found  in  the  Eighteenth  Report  of  the  State  Entomologist  of 
Illinois,  with  keys  and  figures  for  the  discrimination  of  the  various  spe- 
cies thus  far  separated. 

The  injurious  species  agree  fairly  well  in  the  main  features  of  their 
life  history.  They  change,  when  full  grown,  to  dormant  pupae  in  the 
earth  in  July,  or  sometimes  in  August,  and  again  some  three  or  four 


1900.] 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


51* 


weeks  later  to  the  brown  or  reddish  beetles  commonly  known  as  click- 
beetles  or  "  jumping-jacks  " — hard,  somewhat  hairy  insects,  of  slender 
oval  form,  distinguished  at  once  by  their  peculiar  habit  of  springing  into 
the  air  with  a  sudden  click  when  placed  upon  their  backs.  A  large  part 
of  these  fully  developed  beetles  remain  under  ground  until  spring,  enjoy- 
ing there  the  protection  of  the  oval  earthen  cavity  or  cell  formed  by  the 


Fig.  93.     The  Corn  Wireworm, 
Melanotus  cribulosus,  adult. 


Fig.  94.     Drasterius  elegans,  adult. 


larva  as  a  preparation  for  pupation.  A  part,  however,  come  forth  from 
the  ground  in  fall,  passing  the  winter  in  sheltered  places,  and  the  remain- 
der emerge  in  spring,  laying  their  eggs  most  commonly  in  grass-lands 
in  the  earth.  Of  their  subsequent  life  history  little  is  yet  definitely 
known.  It  seems  certain  that  all  live  more  than  one  year  as  wireworms 
in  the  earth,  and  observation  of  the  various  sizes  of  larvae  of  the  same 
species  to  be  found  in  the  field  at  once,  usually  supports  the  common 
impression  that  the  period  of  life  in  the  larval  stage  does  not  extend  much 
beyond  two  years.  Obviously,  infested  ground,  and  especially  infested 
grass-land,  should  not  be  put  into  sugar  beets  for  a  year  or  two  after  it 
is  broken  up  from  sod. 

WHITE  GRUBS. 
Lachnosterna  and  Ligynis. 

The  white  grubs  or  grub-worms  are  the  larvae  or  young  of  the  very 
common  insects  usually  known  as  May-beetles  or  June-bugs,  and  of 
another  group,  known  as  manure  beetles.  These  grubs  are  so  common 
and  generally  recognized  that  the  accompanying  figures  will  serve  to 
identify  them  without  further  description.  They  are  most  abundant  in 
grass-lands  or  in  lands  recently  in  grass,  although  they  are  occasionally 
bred  in  large  numbers  in  fields  of  corn.  They  do  serious  injury  to  the 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


[August, 


underground  parts  of  a  great  variety  of  crops,  including  sugar  beets, 
being,  like  the  wireworms,  most  destructive  the  second  year  after  grass. 
They  eat  the  smaller  roots,  destroy  the  tap-root  of  the  plant,  or  gnaw 


Fig.  95.  A  June-bug  larva 
or  White  Grub,  Lachnosterna 
rugosa. 


Fig.  97.     A  June-bug,  Lachnosterna  rugosa,  adult; 
a,  last  segments  of  male,  from  beneath. 


large  cavities  in  the  substance  of  the  beet — injuries  frequently  indicated 
by  the  sudden  wilting  of  the  leaves.  In  a  Nebraska  field  of  beets, 
planted  on  ground  which  had  lain  idle  for  a  few  years,  about  fifteen  per 
cent,  of  the  plants  were  thus  destroyed.  Grubs  of  Lachnosterna  rugosa 
have  been  found  by  us  this  year  injuring  the  roots  of  beets  in  central 
Illinois,  and  causing  the  plants  to  wilt. 

The  white  grubs  common  in  this  state  are  elaborately  treated  in 
the  Eighteenth  Report  of  the  State  Entomologist  of  Illinois,  to  which 

reference  may  be  made  for  a  more  de- 
tailed account.  The  following  summary 
of  the  life  history  will,  however,  be  useful 
in  this  place. 

The  eggs  are  transparent  white,  at  first 
oblong-oval,  soon  becoming  nearly  spher- 
ical. They  are  deposited  in  the  earth, 
one  to  three  inches  below  the  surface, 
usually  some  time  in  June,  and  they  hatch 
in  about  ten  to  eighteen  days.  The  young 

larvae  feed  on  roots  during  the  remainder  of  the  season,  winter  over 
deeper  in  the  ground,  and  come  up  and  resume  feeding  when  the  next 
season  opens.  A  second  winter  is  passed  in  the  same  way,  and  in  June 
and  July  of  the  third  season  they  form  oval  cells  in  the  earth,  and  in 
late  summer  change  to  the  June  beetles.  These^beetles  do  not  usually 
leave  their  cells  until  the  following  spring,  when  they  emerge,  pair  and 
lay  their  eggs,  and  soon  die.  They  feed  during  their  short  life  on  the 


Fig.  96.  A  June-bug  larva  or  White 
Grub,  Lachnosterna  rugosa,  last  seg- 
ment, from  beneath. 


I  pOO.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  513 

leaves  of  trees,  especially  oak,  hickory,  and  ash,  as  well  as  on   a  few 
other  plants.     The  damage  to  foliage  is  sometimes  considerable. 

There  are  no  measures  which  can  be  depended  upon  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  white  grubs  in  the  beet  field,  and  the  beet  grower  must  conse- 
quently rely  upon  preventive  measures.  The  most  obvious  of  these  is 
suggested  by  the  fact  that  the  white  grub  is  bred  mainly  in  grass-lands, 
and  that  there  are  few  pastures  or  meadows  of  long  standing  which  are 
not  more  or  less  infested  by  them.  Consequently,  whenever  an  old  sod 
is  broken  up  it  should  be  planted  to  some  other  crop  for  at  least  two  years 
before  it  is  set  in  beets;  or,  if  necessity  requiresUhat  beets  should  be 
raised  on  such  ground  at  once,  this  should  not  be  done  until  it  has  been 
cleared  of  the  grubs  by  thorough  pasturing  of  the  sod  with  pigs.  These 
search  out  and  root  out  the  grubs  in  the  ground,  greedily  devouring  them, 
and  may  in  the  course  of  a  few  weeks  completely  clear  a  badly  infested 
turf.  The  fact  of  the  winter  retreat  of  the  grubs  to  a  considerable  depth 
below  the  surface  must,  however,  be  borne  in  mind  in  this  connection. 
From  November  to  March  inclusive  they  will  commonly  be  beyond  the 
reach  of  pigs. 

THE  MUCK  BEETLE. 

Ligyrus  gibbosus  DeG. 

(PI.  IX.,  Fig.  2.) 

The  larva  of  this  muck  beetle  need  not  ordinarily  be  distinguished 
from  the  white  grubs  above  discussed,  its  size,  habits,  and  appearance 
being  substantially  similar;  but  its  life  history  is  less  definitely  known, 
and  the  period  of  its  continuance  in  the  earth  is  in  doubt.  The  prin- 
cipal economic  difference  is  due  to  the  different  habit  of  the  adult 
beetle,  which  does  not  feed,  so  far  as  known,  upon  the  leaves  of  plants 
like  Lachnosterna  and  Cyclocephala,  but  burrows  in  the  earth,  eating  the 
roots  or  the  lower  part  of  the  stalk  of  the  infested  plant  much  as  does 
the  larva  itself.  In  early  spring,  says  Mr.  H.  E.  Weed,  the  beetles 
are  often  dug  up  by  persons  working  in  grass-land.  They  are  said  by 
Bruner  to  have  been  quite  destructive  to  sugar  beets  over  limited  areas 
in  western  Nebraska,  gnawing  great  holes  into  the  roots  and  sometimes 
thus  entirely  imbedding  themselves.  They  work  at  different  depths  from 
the  surface,  sometimes  as  much  as  six  or  seven  inches,  but  mostly  about 
three  or  four  inches  under  ground.  They  were  most  abundant  on  old 
ground  and  on  ground  that  had  been  irrigated.  They  are  reported  as 
feeding  also  on  carrots,  roots  of  sunflowers,  and  tubers  of  the  dahlia. 
In  Mississippi,  according  to  Mr.  Weed,  a  serious  injury  to  corn  follow- 
ing upon  grass  was  done  by  these  beetles,  which  gnawed  the  base  of  the 
stalk,  causing  the  plant  to  wilt  or  killing  it  outright.  The  species  is 
widely  distributed  in  the  United  States,  and  is  abundant  in  Illinois. 


514  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  \_AugUSt, 


TECHNICAL    LIST    OF  SPECIES   OF   BEET   INSECTS. 

ORDER  ACARINA. 

RED  SPIDERS.  PAGB 

Tetranychus  bimaculatus  Harv 406 

ORDER    ORTHOPTERA. 
GRASSHOPPERS  (Acrididcz,  Locustidce). 

Stenobothrus  curtipennis  Harr 479     Melanoplus  femur-rubrum  De  G 481 

Dissosteira  Carolina  Linn 479     M.  atlanis  Riley 482 

Trimerotropis  latifasciata  Scudd.  . .  .  480     M.  spretus  Thos 482 

Spharagemon  aequale  Scudd 480     Campylacantha  olivacea  Scudd 483 

Schistocerca  alutacea  Harr 480     Orchelimum  vulgare  Harr 483 

Melanoplus  differentialis  Thos 480     Xipbidium  nemorale  Scudd 484 

M.  bivittatus  Say 481     X.  strictum  Scudd 484 

ORDER  HEMIPTERA. 
SUBORDER   HETEROPTERA. 

THE   PIGWEED   BUG. 
Piesma   cinerea  Say 433 

THE   COMMON    FLOWER-BUG. 
Triphleps  insidiosus  Say 434 

LEAF-BUGS  (Capsidce). 

Agalliastes  associatus  Uhl 436  Eccritotarsus  elegans  Uhl 438 

Plagiognathus  obscurus  Uhl 437  Lygus  pratensis  Linn. 438 

Macrocoleus  chlorionis  Say 438  Calocoris  rapidus  Say 440 

Halticus  uhleri  Giard 436  Hadronema  militaris  Uhl 440 

Garganus  fusiformis  Say 438 

SMALLER   PLANT-BUGS    (LygcEid(c). 

Emblethis  griseus  Wolff 442     Geocoris  pallens  Stal 443 

Sphragisticus  nebulosus  Fall 442     Nysius  minutus  Uhl 443 

Geocoris  bullatus  Say 443     N.  angustatus  Uhl 443 

LARGER    PLANT-BUGS    (Corcidte,  Pentatomidce,  Corimelccnidtc). 

Corizus  lateralis  Say 444     Pentatoma  uhleri  Stal 445 

Acanthocerus   galeator  Fabr 445     Corimelaena  pulicaria  Germ 447 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET. 


SUBORDER     HOMOPTERA. 

THE    FLATAS    (Ormenis,  Chlorochroa). 
Ormenis  pruinosa  Say  ..............   431     Chlorocbroa  conica  Say  ...........   431 

LEAF-HOPPERS  (Jassoidea,  DelphacincE}. 

Stobera  tricarinata  Say  ............   415  Athysanus  sp  .....................  423 

Liburnia  ornata  Stal  ...............   415  Eutettix  seminuda  Say  .............  423 

L.  puella  Van  D  ...................   416  E.  tenella  Uhl  .....................  423 

Agallia  4-punctata  Prov  ............  416  Phlepsius  irroratus  Say  ............  424 

A.   novella  Say  .................  ...   417  Thamnotettix  belli  Uhl  ............  424 

A.  uhleri  Van  D  ..................   418  Gnathodus  abdominalis  Van  D  ......  424 

A.  sanguinolenta  Prov  ..............   417  G.  impictus  Van  D  ...............  424 

Oncoraetopia  undata  Fabr  ..........   418  Cicadula  6-notata  Fall  .............  425 

Diedrocephala  versuta  Say  .........   419  Dicraneura  fieberi  Loew  ...........  425 

D.  mollipes  Say  ...................   419  Empoasca  mali  Le  B  ..............  425. 

Gypona  8-lineata  Say  ..............   420  E.  flavescens  Fabr  .................  427" 

Platymetopius  acutus  Say  ..........   420  Typhlocyba  vulnerata  Fitch  ........  427 

Deltocephalus  melsheimeri  Fitch.  .  .  .    421  T.  comes  Say  ................    ....  427 

D.  inimicus  Say  ...................   422  T.  comes  vitis  Harr  ................  427 

D.  nigrifrons  Forbes  ..............   423  . 

TREE-HOPPERS  (Membracidce). 
Acutalis  calva  Say  .......................  i  ..............................   428 

PLANT-LICE  (Aphidida:). 

Pemphigus  betae  Doane  ............   507  Aphis  sp  .........................   430 

Aphis  middletonii  Thos  .............    509  Myzus  achyrantes  Monell  ..........   430 

A.  gossypii  Glover  .................   429  Nectarophora  erigeronensis  Thos.  ?  .  .   431 

A.  atriplicis  Linn  ..................   430  N.  pisi  Kalt  .......................   431 

ROOT  COCCID. 
Dactylopius  solani  Ckll.  ?  ...................................................    509 


ORDER  COLEOPTERA. 

GROUND-BEETLES  (Carabtdce). 

Clivina  impressif rons  Lee 484 

CARRION-BEETLES. 
Silpha  opaca  Linn 484     Silpha  bituberosa  Lee 485 

WIREWORMS   (Elateridtc}. 

Drasterius  elegans  Fabr 510     Melanotus  sp 510 

Melanotus  cribulosus  Lee 510 

WHITE  GRUBS. 

Lachnosterna  rugosa  Melsh 512     Ligyrus  gibbosus  DeG 513 

Lacbnosterna  sp 512 


BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

LEAF-BEETLES  (Chrysomclidcv), 

NON-JUMPING    LEAF-BEETLES. 

Breeding  on  Leaves  of  Plants. 

Cassida  nebulosa  Linn 472     Monoxia  consputa  Lee 475 

Monoxia  puncticollis  Say 475 

Breeding  on  A'oots  of  Plants. 

Colaspis  brunnea  Fabr 473     Diabrotica  vittata  Fabr 474 

Diabrotica  i2-punctata  Oliv 473     D.  longicornis  Say 475 

FLEA-BEETLES. 

Breeding  on  Leaves  of  Plants. 

Disonycha  crenicollis  Say 463     Disonycha  xanthomelaena  Dalm 464 

D.  triangularis  Say 463     D.  cervicalis  Lee 465 

Breeding  on  Roots  of  Plants. 

Crepidodera  atriventris  Melsh 465  Systena  frontalis  Fabr 468 

Epitrix  cucumeris  Harr 465  S.  taeniata  Melsh 468 

E.  brevis  Schwarz 466  Longitarsus  melanurus   Melsh 470 

Chaetocnema  den ticulata  111 466  Glyptina  brunnea  Horn 470 

C.  pulicaria  Melsh 466  Phyllotreta  vittata  Fabr 471 

C.  confinis  Cr 467  P.  decipiens  Horn 471 

Systena  hudsonias  Forst 467  P.  albionica  Lee 471 

Leaf-mining  Flea-beetles. 
Psylliodes  punctulata  Melsh 472     Psylliodes  convexior  Lee 472 

BLISTER-BEETLES  (Meloidce). 

Megetra  vittata  Lee 487  Epicauta  cinerea  Forst 488 

Macrobasis  unicolor  Kirby 487  E.  marginata  Fabr 489 

Epicauta  maculata  Say 487  E.  pennsylvanica  DeG 489 

E.  vittata  Fabr 488  Cantharis  nuttalli  Say 490 

E.  vittata  lemniscata  Fabr 488 

SNOUT-BEETLES  (Khynchophora). 
Leaf-eating  Snout-beetles. 

Epicaerus  imbricatus  Say  . . 491     Tanymecus  confertus  Gyll 493 

Otiorhynchus  sulcatus  Fabr 492     Apion  sp 493 

O.  singularis  Mann 492 

Stem-eating    Snout-beetles. 
Centrinus  penicellus  Hbst   493     Centrinus   perscitus  Hbst 493 

ORDER   LEPIDOPTERA. 

THE   CIGAR-CASE  BEARER. 
Coleophora  fletcherella  Fern 494 

LEAF  ROLLERS   (Tortricidu-,  Pyraustidtr). 
Tortricidae,  spp 454     Phlyctaenia  ferrugalis  Walk    453 


ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  517 

GARDEN    WEB-WORMS   (Loxostege,  Hellula). 

Loxostege  sirailalis  Guen 456  Hellula  undalis  Fabr 459 

L.  sticticalis  Linn 457 

CUTWORMS. 

Carneades  messoria  Harr 450     Noctua  c-nigrum  Linn 451 

Chorizagrotis  agrestis  Grote 450     Agrotis  ypsilon  Rott 452 

Noctua  plecta  Linn 452 

EXPOSED   SMOOTH  CATERPILLARS  (Aroctuidfc), 

Leucania  unipuncta  Haw 495     Mamestra  sp 499 

Prodenia  ornithogalli  Guen 496     Peridroma  incivis  Guen 499 

Laphygma  frugiperda  S.  &  A 497     Plusia  brassicae  Riley 500 

L.  flavimaculata  Harv 498     P.  simplex  Guen 501 

Mamestra  trifolii  Rott 499     Copidryas  gloveri  G.&R 502 

Mamestra  picta  Harr 501  Deilephila  lineata  Fabr.  ...*......  503 

WOOLLY  BEARS  (Arctiid(c). 

Spilosoma  virginica  Fabr 504     Leucarctia  acraea  Dru 504 

Pyrrharctia  Isabella  Abb 504 


ORDER   DIPTERA. 
THE    BEET  LEAF-MINERS. 

Chortophila  floccosa  Macq 407     Pegotnyia  vicina  Lintn 407 

C.  betarum  Lintn 407 

STEPHEN  A.   FORBES,   PH.D., 

State  Entomologist. 

CHARLES  A.   HART, 

Assistant. 


518  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 


ECONOMIC   BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


1882. 

LINTNER,   J.  A. — Notice  of  some  Anthomyians  mining  Beet   Leaves.     (Ninth  Ann. 
Rep.  on  the  Injurious  and  other  Insects  of  the  State  of  New  York,  pp.  203-211.) 

Account  of  injury  in  vegetable  garden  at  Middleburg,  N.'Y.,  in  summer  of  1881. 
Method  of  feeding,  notes  on  life  history,  and  description  of  immature  stages  given. 
Three  species  of  adults  bred  from  the  larvae:  Phorbia  (=Chortophila)  floccosa,  C. 
"ketarum  n.  sp.,  and  Pegomyia  vicina  n.  sp.  Similar  depredations  by  these  insects 
observed  at  Morrisville,  N.  Y.,  and  at  Bennington,  Vt.,  during  this  same  season. 

1884. 

LINTNER,  J.  A. — Insects  mining  Beet  Leaves.     (Cultivator  and  Country  Gentleman, 
Vol.  XLIX.,  Aug.  18,  1884,  p.  677  ) 

Answer  to  a  correspondent  who  sends  from  Erie,  Pa.,  beet  leaves  mined  by  larvae 
of  AnthomyidcE.  Species  not  determined.  Refers  to  earlier  observations  of  this 
injury  to  beets.  Advises  picking  off  infested  leaves. 

1888. 
BRUNER,  L. — Report  of  the  Entomologist.     (Rep.  Neb.  State  Bd.  Agr.,  pp.  84-130.) 

Epiccerus  inibricatus  briefly  treated  (p.  117),  and  list  of  food  plants  given,  in- 
cluding the  beet. 

1889. 
CASSIDY,   JAMES. — Notes   on   Insects   and   Insecticides.     (Bull.  6,  Col.   Agr.   Exper. 

Station,   p.   18.) 

Systena  mitts  (=tcEniatd)  reported  to  injure  beets,  etc. 

1890. 
LINTNER,  J.  A. — Notices  of  Various  Insects.    (Sixth  Rep.  State  Ent.  N.Y.,  pp.  109-155.) 

Epicauta  vittata  extensively  treated  (p.  132),  and  beets  mentioned  among  food 
plants. 

WEBSTER,  F.  M. — Notes'on  Garden  Insects.     (Insect  Life,  Vol.  III.,  pp.  148-151. 
Subjoined  statement  also  in  Trans.  Ind.  Hort.  Soc.,  1890,  p.  26.) 

Reports  beets  on  grounds  of  the  Indiana  Experiment  Station  seriously  injured  by 
Systena  blanda  (=tcemala). 

1891. 

BRUNER,   LAWRENCE. — Report  on  Nebraska  Insects.     Beet  Insects.     (Bull.  No.   23, 
U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent  ,  pp.  11-18  ) 

General  description  of  insect  injury  to  beets  in  Nebraska  during  summer  of  1890. 
Notes  use  of  growing  beets  for  shelter  against  the  sun  by  many  insects  not  feeding 
upon  them.  Insect  enemies  of  sugar  beets  mostly  general  weed-feeders,  especially 


1900.  J  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  519 

those  infesting  tumble-weeds,  pigweed,  purslane,  and  other  juicy  weeds.  None  found 
exclusively  injurious  to  beet.  Only  very  few  considered  destructive.  Those  recog- 
nized either  leaf-feeders  or  root-borers.  Publishes  list  of  sixty-four  species  with  brief 
notes  upon  injuries  by  each.  Advises  clean  culture,  and  use  of  arsenical  sprays 
except  for  suctorial  insects,  and  for  these  the  kerosene  emulsion. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE. — Notes  on  Beet  Insects.  (Insect  Life,  Vol.  III.,  No.  5,  pp. 
229,  230  ) 

Author's  abstract  of  article  read  at  the  second  annual  meeting  of  the  Association 
of  Economic  Entomologists,  held  at  Champaign,  111.,  Nov.  11-13,  1890.  Consists 
mainly  of  list  of  sixty-four  species  found  upon  either  leaves  or  root  of  the  sugar 
beet.  Notes  fact  that  most  of  the  common  species  are  usually  known  as  weed-feeding 
forms. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE.  —  Experiments  in  the  Culture  of  the  Sugar  Beet  in  Nebraska. 
Insect  Enemies.  (Bull.  No.  16,  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Vol.  IV.,  Art.  i., 
Sugar  Beet  Series  No.  II.,  pp.  55-72;  and  Fifth  Ann.  Rep.  Neb.  Agr.  Exper. 
Station,  pp.  55-72.) 

General  article,  discussing  the  garden  web-worm,  several  flea-beetles,  blister- 
beetles,  true  bugs,  leaf-hoppers,  cutworms,  and  wireworms,  giving  descriptions,  illus- 
trations, habits,  and  life  histories  of  several  of  them,  with  description  of  injuries  to 
beets  and  other  food  plants,  and  recommendation  of  remedies. 

OSBORN,  HERBERT,  and  GOSSARD,  H.  A. — Some  Insect  Enemies  of  the  Sugar  Beet. 
(Bull.  No.  15,  Iowa  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Nov.  1891,  pp.  265-272.) 

General  article,  including  observations  made  at  Ames,  la.,  with  matter  compiled 
mainly  from  Bruner.  Discusses  cutworms,  grasshoppers,  blister-beetles,  flea-beetles, 
wireworms,  true  bugs,  the  clover  leaf-hopper,  beet  lice,  and  "Insects  associated  with 
rotting  in  Beets." 

WASHBURN,  F.  L. — A  Sugar-Beet  Beetle  (Monoxia  gitttulata}.  (Bull.  No.  14,  Oregon 
Agr.  Exper.  Station,  p.  n;  Noticed  in  Bull.  No.  26,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent., 
p.  ii,  and  in  Bull.  No.  18,  N.  S.,  p.  95.) 

Reported  as  quite  destructive  to  sugar  beets  in  Oregon.  A  solution  of  Paris 
green — half  a  pound  to  fifty  gallons  of  water — with  the  addition  of  three  pounds  of 
whale-oil  soap  killed  the  beetles,  but  six  weeks  later  they  were  again  at  work.  Double 
the  above  strength  of  poison  was  used  without  injury  to  the  beet  leaf. 

1892. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE.— Notes  on  certain  Caterpillars  attacking  Sugar  Beets.  (Bull. 
No.  24,  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Vol.  V.,  Art.  II.,  Sugar  Beet  Series,  No.  IV., 
PP-  3-7;  Sixth  Ann.  Rep.  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  App.,  pp.  47-51.) 

Description  of  food  plants  and  natural  history  of  some  of  the  garden  web-worms, 
with  illustrations  of  I-.urycreon  similis  (after  Riley).  Natural  and  artificial  remedies. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE. — Report  upon  Insect  Depredations  in  Nebraska  for  1891.  Sugar 
Beet  Insects.  (Bull.  No.  26,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  pp.  10,  n.) 

Adds  two  species  to  list  of  Nebraska  beet  insects,  and  two  others  are  reported 
from  Oregon.  Notes  abundance  of  cutworms,  which  almost  destroyed  entire  crop  on 
two  Experiment  Station  plats.  Observation  indicating  that  fall  plowing  followed  by 
spring  plowing  may  prevent  injury. 


520  BULLETIN  'NO.     60.  [August, 

NICHOLSON,  H.  H.,  and  LLOYD,  RACHEL. — Experiments  in  the  Culture  of  the  Sugar 
Beet  in  Nebraska.  (Bull.  No.  21,  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Vol.  V.,  Art.  I., 
Sugar  Beet  Series  No.  III.,  p.  15;  Sixth  Ann.  Rep.  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station, 
App..  p.  15-) 

Mention  of  injury  to  beets  by  cutworms.  Amount  of  injury  as  related  to  previous 
crop.  Destruction  by  poisoning. 

SHAW,  G.  W. — Sugar  Beet.  (Oregon  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Bull.  No.  17,  p.  15;  Bull. 
No.  44,  p.  36.) 

Under  "Enemies,"  Monoxia  guttulata  (see  Washburn,  1891),  Pliyllotrela 
decipiens,  and  cutworms  are  reported  as  injurious. 

1893. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE. — Report  upon  Insect  Injuries  in  Nebraska  during  the  Summer 
of  1892.  Beet  Insects.  (Bull.  No.  30,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  pp.  36-41.) 

Describes  injuries  by  Hadronema  mililaris,  blister-beetles,  white  grubs  (Lach- 
nosterna),  the  beet  web-worm  {Loxostege  sticticalis),  the  garden  web-worm  (Loxo- 
stcge  similalis),  Silpha  opaca,  and  species  of  Mamestra  and  Anthomyia.  Gives  also 
remedies  and  preventive  measures  for  blister-beetles  and  white  grubs,  and  notes  on 
the  life  histories  of  L.  sticticalis  and  Anthomyia. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE. — Something  about  a  few  of  the  Insect  Enemies  of  the  Sugar 
Beet.  (Bull.  No.  27,  Neb.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  Vol.  VI.,  Art.  I.,  Sugar  Beet 
Series,  No.  V.,  pp.  30-33.) 

General  preliminary  discussion  of  insects  injuring  beets  in  Nebraska,  including 
Hadronema  militaris  (quite  numerous),  two  or  three  leaf-hoppers  not  specified, 
white  grubs  (destroying  in  one  case  fully  fifteen  per  cent,  of  the  beets),  and  two  or 
more  species  of  web-worms,  the  injuries  and  life  history  of  one  of  which  (Loxostcge 
sticticalis)  is  briefly  summarized.  Results  of  experiments  with  arsenical  and  kero- 
sene sprays  were  favorable.  Expenses  of  spraying  estimated. 

LINTNER,  J.  A. — Beet  Insects.  (Cultivator  and  Country  Gentleman,  Vol.  LVI.,  July 
16,  1891,  p.  577;  Ninth  Ann.  Rep.  on  the  Injurious  and  other  Insects  of  the  State 
of  New  York,  pp.  374-376.) 

Describes  injuries  to  beet  leaves  submitted  for  examination.  Infers  attack  by 
tarnished  plant-bug,  flea-beetles,  and  leaf-miners.  Advises  use  of  kerosene  emulsion. 

RILEY,  C.  V. — The  Sugar  Beet  Web-worm.  Loxostege  sticticalis  Linn.  (Rep.  of 
theEatomologist,  in  Ann.  Rep.  Dept.  Agr.  for  1892,  pp.  172-175,  PI. VI.,  Fig.  1-3.) 

Account  of  outbreaks  of  this  insect  in  Nebraska  beet-fields  in  1891  and  1892,  with 
details  of  its  successful  treatment  with  Paris  green.  Life  history  given  so  far  as 
known;  also  brief  descriptions  of  egg  and  larva.  Moth  and  larva  contrasted  with  cor- 
responding stages  of  the  "so-called  garden  web-worm." 

RILEY.  C.  V.,  and  HOWARD,  L.  O. — The  Sugar  Beet  Web-worm.  (Insect  Life,  Vol. 
V.,  July,  pp.  320-322.  Four  figures.) 

Notes  additional  to  the  above,  with  account  of  experimental  economic  measures 
for  the  destruction  of  the  larval  cases  in  fall.  Conclusion  reached  that  most  of  larvse 
left  undisturbed  in  beet  fields  will  transform  to  adults  and  stock  the  beet  plantations 
with  their  eggs— probably  in  June.  Three  generations  believed  to  occur.  Recom- 
mends application  of  Paris  green  solution  on  first  appearance  of  larvas. 


]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  521 

1894. 

BRUNER,  LAWRENCE. —Report  on  Injurious  Insects  in  Nebraska  and  Adjoining  Dis- 
tricts.    Sugar  Beet  Insects.     (Bull.  No.  32,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Ent..  p.  18.) 

Account  of  "  7'anymccus  confertus  as  a  Sugar  Beet  Enemy." 

HOWARD,   L.  O. — Completed    Life-history    of    the    Sugar  Beet    Web-worm.     (Insect 
Life,  Vol.  VI.,  pp.  369-373,  Fig-  3°,  31-) 

HUSTON,   H.   A.  — Sugar  Beets.     (Bull.   No.  49,   Purdue  Univ.   Agr.  Exper.  Station, 
Vol.  V.,  March.) 

Under  "Injury  from  Insects"  (p.  33),  damage  by  E-picauta  marginata 
(=(incrca)  recorded,  with  note  of  remedy  used. 

PIPER,  C.  V.— Small  punctured  flea-beetle   (Psylliodes  -punctidatd).     (The   Ranch 
June  23,  1894.) 

Damage  to  Sugar  beets.  Remedies. 

1895. 

GILLETTE,  C.   P.,  and  BAKER,  CARL  F. — A  Preliminary  List  of   the  Hemiptera  of 
Colorado.     (Bull.  No.  31,  Tech.  Ser.,   No.  i,  Col.  Agr.  Exper.  Station.     137  pp.) 

Record  from  sugar  beets  the  following  species:  Nysius  minutus  (p.  22),  Geo- 
coris  pallcns  (p.  24),  Lygus pratensis  (p.  36),  Agallia  uklert'(p.  Si),  Platymetopius 
acutus  (p.  84),  Thamnotcttiy,  (=Eutettix)  tenella  (p.  100),  Gnathodus  abdominalis 
(p.  104),  and  Dactylopius  solani?  (p.  126);  and  from  "cultivated  beet,"  Tham- 
notettix  (=.Euteltix)  belli  (p.  94). 

HOWARD,  L.  O. — The  Beet-Leaf  Pegomyia  (Pegomyia  vicina  Lintn.).     (Insect  Life, 
Vol.  VII..  p.  379.) 

Account  of  its  injuries  in  sugar-beet  fields  in  California.     Figure. 

1896. 

OSBORN,  HERBERT. — Spraying  Mangels  for  Blister  Beetle  [Epicauta  pennsylvanicd\. 
(Bull.  No.  33,  Iowa  Agr.  Coll.  Exper.  Station,  pp.  597,  598.) 

A  solution  of  London  purple,  one  pound  to  two  hundred  gallons  of  water,  was 
found  to  be  a  very  satisfactory  spray,  costing  about  one  dollar  an  acre.  When  sugar 
beets  are  attacked  by  this  insect  the  same  treatment,  it  is  said,  will  be  found  effective. 

QUAINTANCE,  A.  L. — Insects  Affecting  the   Beet.     (Bull.   No.   34,    Fla.   Agr.   Exper. 
Station,  March,  1896,  pp.  264-266.) 

Brief  general  account  of  blister-beetles,  cutworms,  and  wireworms,  with  refer- 
ence to  miscellaneous  insects  affecting  the  beet. 

SIRRINE,  F.  A. — The  Spinach  Leaf  Maggot  or  Miner,  Pegomyia  vicina.     (Fourteenth 
Ann.  Rep.  Bd.  of  Control,  N.  Y.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  pp.  625-633,  PI.  IV.) 

General  article.     Known  only  to  feed  on  Chcnopodium,  beets,  and  spinach. 

1898. 

CHITTENDEN,  F.  H.— A  New  Sugar-Beet  Beetle.     (Bull.  No.  18,  N.  S.,   U.  S.   Dept. 
Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  95.) 

Reports  serious  local  injury  to  sugar  beet  by  Monoxia  puncticollis  in  N.  Mex. 
Gives  correspondent's  notes  on  life  history.  Principal  damage  by  larva. 


522  BULLETIN    NO.     60.  [August, 

SAUNDERS,  D.  A. — Four  Injurious  Insects.     (Bull.  No.  57,  U.  S.  Exper.   Station,   S. 
Dak.,  pp.  35-52.) 

Lioderma  (=Pcntatoma)  uhleri  and  Eptcauta  maculata  treated.  Said  to  attack 
beets;  the  former  new  as  a  beet  insect. 

SAYLOR,  CHAS.  F. — Beet-Sugar  Industry  in  the  United  States.     (House   Document 
396,  55th  Congress,  ad  Session;  Separate  Reprint.  72  pp.) 

On  pp.  224  and  231  are  given  answers  by  correspondents  in  Nebraska,  California, 
and  New  Mexico  to  the  question,  "What  are  the  obstacles  you  encounter,  including 
diseases,  insects,  etc.?" 

WILCOX,  E.  V. — An  Army  Cutworm.     (Bull.    No.    17,    Mont.   Agr.   Exper.    Station, 
pp.  10-18.) 

Description  of  an  excessive  outbreak  of  Chorizagrotis  agrestis,  with  an  exten- 
sive list  of  plants  attacked,  including  beets. 

1899. 

COCKERELL,  T.  D.  A. — Megetra  vittata  injuring  Sugar  Beets.     (Ent.   News,   Vol. 
X.,  p.  44.) 

Reported  by  a  correspondent  in  New  Mexico.  Comment  on  coloration  of  the  two 
specimens  sent. 

FELT,  E.  P.— Notes  of  the  Year  for  New  York.     (Bull.   No.   20,   N.  S.,  U.   S.   Dept. 
Agr.,  Div.  Ent.,  p.  60.) 

Reports  injury  by  Systenafrontalis  to  sugar  beets  in  N.  Y.  Insect  killed  by 
spraying  with  Paris  green. 

<3iLLETTE,  C.  P. — The  Sugar-Beet  Caterpillar.     (Special  Press  Bulletin,   Col.   Agr. 
Exper.  Station,  Aug.  19,  1899.) 

Injuries  to  sugar  beets  in  Colorado  by  Laphygma  flavimaculata  reported. 
Spraying  with  Paris  green  recommended. 

PETTIT,  RUFUS  H. — Some  Insects  of  the  Year  1898.       13.  Leaf-miner  in  Sugar-Beet. 
(Bull.  175,  Mich.  State  Agr.  Coll.  Exper.  Station,  pp.  356,  357,  Fig.  14.) 
Pegomyia  vicina  reported  mining  sugar-beet  leaves  in  Michigan.     Imago  figured. 

STONE,  ].  L. — Sugar-Beet  Investigations  for  1898.     Part  I.     Observations  and  Con- 
clusions based  upon  a  Study  of  Field  Conditions.    (Bull.  166,  Cornell  Univ.  Agr. 
Exper.  Station,  March,  pp.  419-438.) 
"Enemies  of  the  Beet  Crop  "  (p.  425);    Systena  tceniata,   S>  hudsonias,    and 

Pegomyia  vicina  reported  as  common  beet-feeders,  but  no  considerable  damage  done. 

1900. 
CHITTENDEN,  F.  H.— The  Pale-striped  Flea-beetle  (Systena  blanda  Mels.).      (Bull. 

No.  23,  N.  S.,  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Eat.,  pp.  22-29.) 

Detailed  account  of  this  species  as  an  enemy  of  cultivated  plants,  including 
sugar  beets. 

DOANE,  R.  W. — A  New  Sugar   Beet  Insect,    and  other  Insects  attacking  the  Beet. 

(Bull.  No.  42,  Wash.  State  Agr.  Exper.  Station.     14  pp.,  4  figures.)    . 

Detailed  account  of  the  beet  aphis  (Pemphigus  beUc)  and  its  injuries  to  sugar 
beets;  also  brief  treatment  of  flea-beetles, — especially  Psylliodes  punctidata, — and 
of  cutworms, — in  particular  Carneades  messoria, — as  beet  insects. 


IpOO.]  ECONOMIC    ENTOMOLOGY    OF    THE    SUGAR    BEET.  523 

DOANE,  R.  W.  — Notes  on  a  New  Sugar-Beet  Pest,  with  a  Description  of  the  Species. 
(Ent.  News,  Vol.  XL,  No.  3,  pp.  390,  391.) 

Description  of  Pemphigus  betcc,  with  note  of  extent  and  character  of  its  injuries 
to  the  sugar  beet  in  Washington  State,  and  a  brief  account  of  its  life  history. 

GILLETTE,  C.  P. — The  Beet  Army  Worm  (Laphygma  Jlavimaculata).  (The  Sugar 
Beet,  July,  1900,  p.  103*;  Twelfth  Ann.  Rep.  Col.  Agr.  Exper.  Station,  p.  39— 
briefer  account  of  same  outbreak.) 

Account  of  injuries  to  beets  in  Colorado  in  August,  1899.  Many  acres  com- 
pletely stripped  of  foliage;  body  of  the  beet  also  injured.  Items  of  life  history  given. 
Arsenical  poisons  tested  successfully.  Arsenate  of  lead  preferred.  One  pound  to  a 
hundred  gallons  of  water  used  without  injury  to  beets.  Occurrence  of  insect  reported 
at  various  Colorado  points  and  at  Lehi,  Utah.  Figure  of  injured  beets. 

*  Received  after  the  paragraphs  on  this  species  (in  preceding  article)  were  in  type. 


ERRATA.  —  On  page  423,  under  Eutettix  tenella  Uhl.,  the  synonym  Thamnotettix 
lenella  Uhl.  should  have  been  placed;  and  on  page  464,  line  i,  yellovt-back  should 
read  ye\\ov/-(>/ack. 


All  the  figures  of  the  plates  except  Fig.  i,  Plate  III.,  and  Figures  29,  31,  58,  65, 
72,  84,  and  85  in  the  text,  drawn  by  the  Artist  of  the  State  Laboratory  of  Natural 
History,  Miss  L.  M.  Hart,  are  published  in  this  paper  for  the  first  time.  Figures 
18-21,  27,  28,  30,  39-41,  45,  49,  53,  55,  56,  60,  69-71,  73,  74,  76,  81,  86,  88,  and  89-97 
have  all  been  published  in  the  Reports  of  the  State  Entomologist  of  Illinois. 


524 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 


{A  it gu  sty. 


PLATE  I. 


Fig.  i.      Stobera  tricarinata. 


••••••••••••i 


Fig.  2.     Liburnia  puella. 


Fig.  3.     Liburnia  ornata. 
DELPHACINE   LEAF-HOPPERS. 


ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OK  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 


525 


PLATE  II. 


Fig.  i.      Cicadida  scxnolata.  Fig.  2.      Dcltoceplialus  nigrifrons. 


Fig.  3-     Empoasca  mali.  Fig.  4.     Emfoasca  flarescens. 

GREEN   LEAF-HOPPERS. 


526 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

PLATE    III. 


[August, 


Fig.  i.  The  Grape  Leaf-hoppers,  Typhlocyba.  Leaf  showing  effect  of  injury, 
and,  on  under  side,  the  cast  skins  and  the  young;  at  left,  young  of  different  ages;  at 
right,  adults  of  T.  vidnerata  (upper)  and  T.  comes  (lower).  (Lugger.) 


Fig.  2.      I'hlepsitis  irroratus. 


Fig.  3.     The  False  Flea-hopper,  Agal- 
liastes  associatiis. 


1900. J        ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET. 

PLATE    IV. 


527 


Fig.  i.      The  Green  Lfaf-bug.  Macrocoleus    chlorionis. 


Fig.  2.      The  Three-spotted  Flea-beetle,   Disonycha  triangularis. 


528 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

PLATE    V. 


Fig.  i.     Larva,  dorsal  view. 


\August, 


Fig.  2.     Larva,  side  view. 


Fig.  3.     Face  of  larva. 


Fig   4.     Pupa. 


Fig.  5.     Adult.  Fig.  6.     Eggs  on  leaf. 

THE  YELLOW-BLACK  FLEA-BEETLE,   DISONYCHA  XANTHOMEL.ENA. 


1900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET, 

PLATE    VI. 


529 


r 


Fig.  i.    Beet-leaf  riddled  by  the  Yellow-Black  Flea-beetle,  Disonycha  xanthomehcna. 


53° 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

PLATE    VII. 


[August, 


Fig.  i.     Epitrix  brcris. 


Fig.  2.      Gfyptina  brunnea. 
FLEA-BEETLES. 


1 900.]       ECONOMIC  ENTOMOLOGY  OF  THE  SUGAR  BEET.          531 

PLATE    VIII. 


Fig.  i.     The  Smart  weed  Flea-beetle,  Systena  hudsonias. 


Fig.  2.     The  Red-headed  Flea-beetle,  Systena  frontalis. 
FLEA-BEETLES,   SYSTENA. 


S32 


BULLETIN    NO.     60. 

PLATE    IX. 


[August, 


Fig.  i.     The  Grape-vine  Colaspis,  Colasfis  brnnnca. 


Fig.  2.     The  Muck  Beetle,  Ligynts  gibbosus. 


INDEX, 


Ambrosia  .   282 

Ammoniacal    carbonate   of    copper 

solution 203 

Apple  scab  fungus 185-204 

Apple  orchards,  acreage  in  Illinois.  .  .   182 

Arsenite  of  lime 393 

Aspidiotus  obscurus 271 

Barley,  loose  and  covered  smut  of.  ...   317 
Beets,  see  sugar  beets. 

Blair,   J.   C 114,  204,  395 

Blue  grass,  leaf  smut  of 348 

Bordeaux  mixture 203,  391,  392 

Broom  corn,  grain  smut  of 335 

Burrill,  T.  J 114 

Carbohydrates  of  corn  denned 207 

Ceres  pulver  for  smuts 294,  310,  311 

Chilocorus  bivulnerus 283 

Cintractia  Reiliana 346 

Cintractia  sorghi-vulgaris 335 

Clean  cultivation  for  orchards 109,  in 

Clinton,   G.  P 349 

Clover  for  orchards no,  in 

Codlin  moth 185 

Copper  sulphate  solution 

203,   294,  296,  310,  311 

Corn — 

Analysis  of  one  variety.  • 149 

Analysis  of  different  ears 150-154 

Analysis  of  single  kernels 154-157 

Circular  of  inquiry  to  farmers....   58-9 

Cost  of  production 70  i 

Corn  ash — 

Defined 207 

Determination  of 143,  157 

Corn  complete  composition 157 

Corn  composition  — 

Carbohydrates 164 

Dextrine 167 

Fiber 167 

Pentosans 167 

Proteids 159 

Starch 167 

Sucrose 167 

Corn,  dry  matter  determination  of,  141-143 
Corn  fat — 

Denned  207 

Determination  of 147-149 

To  influence  content 224 


Corn  fodder,  digestibility  of 362-365 

Corn  improvement  in  chemical  com- 
position   205-240 

Corn  kernel,  mechanical  study  of,  217,  230 

Corn  nitrogen,  determination  of 144 

Corn,  oil  of  . . 169 

Corn  protein — 

Defined 207 

To  influence  content 210 

Corn  proximate  composition  — 

Historical 130-141 

Experimental 141 

Corn  smut,  see  Indian  corn. 

Corn  stover  digestibility  of 366-369 

Corrosive  sublimate 294,  311 

Davenport,  E 22,  103 

Forbes,  S.  A 283,  517 

Formalin 294,  296,  311,  312,  348 

Fraser,  W.  J 103 

Fruit  bark  beetle 280 

Fungus  of  sugar  beets 17 

Grain  smut  of  Hungarian  grass 347 

Grain  smut  of  sorghum  and  broom  corn  — 

Damage 337 

Experiments 338-346 

Life  history   335 

Treatment 336 

Grass  for  orchard iio-ni 

Hart,  C.  A 517 

Head  smut  of  sorghum 346 

Holden,  P.  G 52 

Hopkins,  C.  G 52,  180,  240,  370 

Hot  water  treatment 294, 

296,   308,   310,   311,   313,  315,  318,  320 

Hungarian  grass,  smut  of    347 

Illinois  as  a  sugar  producing  state  — 

Advantages 23 

Coal  and  lime 21 

Labor 21 

Quality  of  beets 20 

Transportation  and  markets 23 

Water 22 

Yield 20 

Indian  corn,  smut  of 321 

Indian  corn  and  teosinte  smut — 

Damage    322 

Experiments 324-325 

Infection  325-327 


(533) 


534 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[Augus-t, 


Life  history 321-322 

Prevention 325-327 

Relation  to  land 329-335 

Insect  enemies  of  San  Jose  scale — 

Chilocorus  bivulnerus 283 

Pentilia  misella 283 

Insects  of  sugar  beets 17,  397-532 

Classification  of 403-404 

Preventive  and  remedial    measures 

400-403 

Technical  list  of SM^S1? 

Insects  of  sugar  beets,  common  names — 

Army-worm 495 

Ash  colored  blister-beetle 488 

Beet  aphis 507 

Beet  army-worm 498 

Beet  carrion-beetle    484 

Beet  leaf -miners 407 

Beet  web-worm 457 

Black  blister-beetle 489 

Black  vine-weevil 492 

Black-winged  grasshopper  479 

Cabbage  flea-beetle 471 

Cabbage  Plusia 500 

Celery  Plusia 501 

Cigar-case  bearer 494 

Clay-colored  weevil 492 

Common  garden  web-worm 456 

Common  flower  bug 434 

Common  gray  blister-beetle 487 

Common  grass- worm 497 

Common  negro-bugs 447 

Common  red-legged  grasshopper...   481 

Common  red  spiders 406 

Corn  flea-beetle 466 

Cotton  cut  worm 496 

Dusky  leaf-bug 437,  440 

European  beet-tortoise-beetle 472 

False  chinch-bug 443 

False  flea  hopper 436 

Garden  flea-hopper 436 

Garden  Mamestra 499 

Grape-leaf  hoppers 427 

Grape-vine  colaspis 473 

Greasy  cut  worm 452 

Green  beet  leaf-worm 499 

Green  flata 431 

Greenhouse  leaf-roller 453 

Green  leaf -bug 438 

Hedge  hog  caterpillar 504 

Imbricated  snout-beetle    491 

Imported  garden  web-worm 459 

Large-eyed  purslane  bug 443 

Larger  meadow  grasshopper 483 

Large  striped-flea-beetle 463 

Leaf-hoppers 410-427 

Lubber  grasshopper 480 

Margined  blister-beetle 489 

Mealy  flata 431 

Melon  aphis 429 

Muck  beetle 513 

Northern  corn  rootworm    475 

Nuttall's  blister-beetle 490 


Pale-striped  flea-beetle 468 

Pigweed  bug 433 

Purslane-caterpillar 502 

Purslane-sphinx    503 

Red-headed  flea-beetle 468 

Rhubarb  flea-beetle 472 

Root  mealy  bug 509 

Salt-marsh  caterpillar 504 

Smar tweed  flea-beetle 467 

Southern  corn  root  worm 473 

Spotted  blister-beetle 487 

Spotted  cutworm     451 

Striped  blister-beetle   488 

Striped  cucumber  beetle 474 

Sweet-potato  flea-beetle 467 

Tarnished  plant-bug 438 

Three-spotted  flea-beetle 463 

Tree-hoppers 428 

Western  army-cutworm 450 

Western  cabbage  flea-beetle 471 

Western  green  stink-bug 445 

White  grubs 511 

Wire  worms 509 

Yellow-black  flea-beetle 464 

Yellow  grasshopper    479 

Zebra-caterpillar 501 

Kerosene  emulsion 202,  401 

Kerosene  and  water  by   "  Kerowater  " 

pump 202 

Kinley,  David 54 

Oats- 
Circular  of  inquiry  as  to  cost 58-9 

Cost  of  production 72-3 

Oat  smut,  see  loose  and  hidden. 

Oats  for  orchard 109,  1 1 1 

Orchard  — 

Clean  cultivation 109 

In  oats 109 

In  clover no 

In  corn no 

In  grass no 

Orchard  cultivation — 

Cost 112 

Tools  and  process in 

Orchard  management — 

Cultivation 373~38i 

Fertility 383-388 

Preparation  for  planting  trees 113 

Pruning 381-383 

Reasons  for  unproductive  orchards.   372 

Spraying  388 

Leaf,  smut  of  timothy,    red   top,  blue 

grass    348 

Lepidinm 282 

Literature  upon  sugar  beets 51 

Localities  of  San  Jose  scale  in  Illinois — 

Increase  in  old 245-247 

New 243-245 

Loos"e  and  covered  smut  of  barley — 

Damage 3J8 

Life  history 3*7 

Prevention 3J8 


i  goo.  ] 


INDEX. 


535 


Loose  and  hidden  smut  of  oats  — 

Damage 298-305 

Hot  water  experiments 313 

Life  history 297 

Miscellaneous  experiments 305~3og 

Prevention  experiments 3°9-3l3 

Loose  smut  of  wheat  — 

Damage 318 

Life  history 319 

Prevention 319 

London  purple 202 

Lysol 294 

Meteorological  records  for  1889-1897.       5 

iricrocera  sp 276 

Milk  variation  and  milk  production — 
Beginning  of  period  of  lactation. .  . .   100 
Behavior    near   close    of    lactation 

period 99 

Composition    of   first    and  last  milk 

drawn    101 

Comparison  of  two  cows 102 

Daily  variation 98 

In  fat 80-81 

In  individual  cows 84-97 

In  solids  not  fat   ." 81-82 

In  total  solids 82 

Nursery  inspection — 

Certificate    248 

Expenses  of 250 

Inspectors 249 

List  of  nurseries  inspected 250 

Palmer,  A.  W 23 

Paris  green 202,  391,  401,  402,  403 

Pcntilia  misclla   283 

Potassium  sulphid 294,  296,  310,  311 

Prevention  of  smut  — 

By  chemicals 293,  310,  311 

By  clean  seed 293 

By  hot  water 294,   310,  313 

Conclusions 316 

Theory 292 

Red  top,  see  leaf  smut  of 348 

Rolfe,  C.  W. 22 

San  Jose  scale — 

Details  of  treatment 256-266 

Difficulties  of  co-operation 266-69 

Efficient  fungous  disease 270-280 

Experiments  with  sprays 280-282 

Food  plants 282 

General  insecticide  procedure. .  .269-270 

Increase  in  old  localities 245-247 

Insect  enemies  of 283 

Insecticide  treatment 251-270 

Insecticide  apparatus 254-256 

Miscellaneous  field  notes 282 

New  Illinois  localities 243-245 

Nursery  inspection ...  .247-251 

Results  of  treatment 256-266 

Scolytus  rugulosiis 280 

Seed  corn,  selection  by  analysis 207 

Setaria  italica 347 

Smuts — 

Damage  done  by 291-292 


General  structure 289-290 

Grain  smut  of  Hungarian  grass  ....   347 
Grain  smut  of  sorghum  and  broom 

corn 335 

Head  smut  of  sorghum 346 

Kinds  of 290-291 

Of  Indian  corn  and  teosinte 321 

Prevention  of 292-296 

Leaf  smut  of  timothy,  red  top,  and 

blue  grass   348 

Loose  and  covered  of  barley. .  .  .317-318 

Loose  and  hidden  of  oats 297 

Loose  of  wheat 318 

Stinking,  of  wheat 319 

Tall  oat  grass 316-317 

Solatium 282 

Sorghum — 

Grain  smut  of . .   335 

Head  smut  of 346 

Sfhfcrostilbe  coccophila 270-280 

Spraying  apple  trees — 

Applications 188-191,  388 

Experiments 188 

Machinery 195-201 

Solutions . .  -. 201-204,  391 

Specific  directions 185 

Stink  smut  of  wheat — 

Damage 320 

Life  history 319 

Prevention 320 

Sugar  beets — 

Analysis  of 6-15 

Analysis  of  experiment  station  beets 

18-19 

Farmer's  contract  to  factory 25 

Insects  of 397~532 

List  of  insects 514-51? 

Literature 51 

Meteorological  records    5 

Statistics 48-51 

What   the  Experiment   Station  has 

done  and  proposes  to  do 1-2 

Sugar  beet  culture — 

Cultivating 33 

General 41 

Havesting , 36 

Highly  bred  seed   42 

Hoeing 34 

Labor 41 

Plowing 30 

Preparation  of  seed  bed 31 

Production  of  seed 42 

Seeding 32 

Siloing 36 

Soil 30 

Thinning  out 34 

Sugar  making,  cost  and  profits  of  ...  .43-7 

Tall  oat  grass,  smut  of 316 

Teosinte,  smut  of   321 

Tilletiafoetens 319 

Timothy,  leaf  smut  of 348 

Twice-stabled  lady-bird 283 

Ustilago  avente 297 


536 


BULLETIN    NO.    60. 


[August,  i goo. 


Ustilago  crameri 347 

Ustilago  hordei 317 

Ustilago  mida 317 

Ustilago  levis     297 

Ustilago  perenans 316 

Ustilago  striaeformis 348 

Uslilago  tritici 318 


Ustilago  zeae 321 

Whale  oil  soap   203 

Wheat- 
Loose  smut  of 318 

Stinking  smut  of 319-321 

Weston,  N.   A 53-69 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 


